Think About It...

You know all those things that you grew up learning to hate as a child? Like:

Drinking, sex before marriage, cheating, lying, stealing, pornography, etc. You built up such a disgust for all these and more. It was easy to like and dislike something when we were younger. Sinning is bad, telling the truth is better. Fish sucks, and pizza rocks. Simple. Easy.

Now? There is no more black and white. It seems that everything is mixed with gray lines. The world has made everything look so good, fun, and acceptable. You can have a drink on special occasions. Having sex before marriage gives you a better sense of the person OR how crappy would it be if you could only sleep with one person for the rest of your life. Getting the answers just for that one question on that one test isn't as bad as cheating on the whole test. What your parents don't know won't hurt 'em. It was just a pair of earrings, they won't be missed. I was just curious. What the world doesn't attach to the end of these new ways is the rest of the story. The emotional story of how you'll be effected.

Does the world tell us how to feel when our friends have accepted these truths? Better yet, how to cope with the guilt and consequences of when you accept them? I understand that things have changed since the Bible days but are we trying to better our lives in this time to be examples like Paul and James? Or are we conforming to whatever we think is acceptable enough? Just a little bit of this and a little bit of that won't harm you. Have we gotten comfortable with the world, only keeping up a good enough relationship with God so that we don't completely forget ourselves??

I've only writing this because I've been guilty of these myself, but thanks to the grace of God that he hasn't completely turned his face against me...

We are supposed to be a part of this world but not of it... we keep falling into the in between part... the blending. I keep falling...

God help us.

A Day At B&N

So don't let this picture scare you! I promise you my teeth look just a little better than this... LOL

After a very important meeting with my Pastor this morning, I was invited to go on an adventure to Barnes and Noble with an awesome person :)

We looked around and fell in love with the millions of Mr. Darcy, Jane Austen, and other hard cover books. We chose to sit down in an aisle that only had books on one side... you'd think that it wasn't a popular area... WRONG! Lol This one lady in a blue dress kept walking through us, two teen girls stood next to our legs and chattered (not talked) about something, and when the lady in the blue dress came back around she brought friends!

We pretended to read some books about dogs as we talked. I came across this picture and thought about how beautiful it was.

After spending many hours pretending to read, my awesome friend and I went to McDonalds. And though I won't speak of everything we saw I will say that we had the most amazing dinner. Chicken caesar salads and banana strawberry smoothies!!! From the Lord!

Best day ever this week :)

P.S. I heart MissNachoCheese ^_^

A Necessary Slap

You know those times when you need to be shut down? You know those times when it actually happens?! Like as if somebody clothes-lined you off your little pony. Well that happened to me recently. Very recently.

Sometimes my feelings get carried away when I feel so strong about something. There is a lot going on in the lives of people around me. And just because I'm not going through what they are doesn't give me the right to think I'm any better than them. Sometimes we get into a mindset that where its like "he's just wrong" or "I'm not as bad as she is". and thats all wrong!!

All sin is the same in God's eyes. That little white lie is just as wrong as killing someone. A sin is a sin. Sometimes I forget that. I admit it. I don't understand what everyone goes through because I haven't experienced everything that some people have. And sometimes I think that anything that I've done does not compare to all the things that someone else has done. How wrong I am.

So the recent spiritual slap in the face I got, left a sting but was appreciated :)

It's great to have those friends who just set you straight when you most need it. God places different people in our lives for different things. Some for you to help, and some to help you.

I love all my friends and family with my heart.

Thank you God, for all the people, young and old, that you've placed in my life. And send a special blessing out to that one person who you've brought into my life who's been a great blessing, help, and friend. Amen

: )

What is my Spiritual gift(s)?

So last night at my church I had class with the young adults and the topic was spiritual gifts. The scripture was from 1 Corinthians 12:27-31. In this passage it lists a few spiritual gifts like: healing, apostles, teaching, prophets, administration, miracles, speaking in tongues, helpers, interpretation... Now I could not really find my gift among these. I mean I think I'm good at helping people out when needed. But I don't know if that is my real gift...

I thought I had my spiritual gift all figured out. I thought that music was my gift... and somehow that was my spiritual gift?? I'm not sure anymore.

Last night we discussed that we should not get natural talents mixed up with spiritual gifts. Singing is a talent... playing guitar is a talent... but I think your spiritual gift is just something that is part of your being. I'm hoping that writing this will help me get some answers somehow.

To figure out more spiritual gifts we looked up some more verses. In Ephesians 4:11-13, there are some more gifts stated and some repeated: apostles, prophets, evangelist, pastors, and teachers. : /

That verse hadn't helped me either. We talked about how important it is to find out what your spiritual gift is. Once you know what it is you'll be more effective in church and your own life. If everyone in the body of Christ knew what their spiritual gift was, can you imagine how effective we would be?

I just know that music is something that I've always loved and that when I sing I feel closer to God because I know its for him. I don't know what it could be. I'm not comfortable at all with speaking in front of people, my leadership are not great because I'm not really outspoken and bold, and I don't feel like my prayer is really effective... bad I know. I do pray. I am obedient and pray when I'm told to. And I don't doubt God's power. I doubt myself. I feel like I never say the right thing. When some people pray they make it sound so powerful and blessed.

So I don't have much of a conclusion for this one. Lol. But it's just something that is on my mind...

Changes and Trials...

It's amazing how time changes things. Especially people.

You could know someone for years and still not understand them completely.

I have seen many friends, over the course of the past 3 years, change right before my eyes. Some changes good, some bad, but I think the not-so-good changes out way everything else. Or maybe they haven't changes... maybe I'm the one who stepped into their lives and I'm just seeing who they really are.

Let me tell you something reader, just because people go to church it does NOT mean that their troubles/struggles are any less. I think they might actually be worse. In the past few months I have seen struggles eat away at the people I care about only turning them into complacent, prideful, and unwilling individuals. I love with them with all my heart, but there is nothing else that I can do anymore unless they change themselves.

We have become so influenced by the world that we have let our guard down and so we are attacked in our weakness. But in our weakness we become prideful, though sometimes unaware of it at the moment. Sometimes it takes certain experiences to make us turn back to where we need to be.

Hopefully in more time there will be more changes...

Nice Eyes...

So I was on the train earlier this afternoon and I noticed a group of friends, women probably in their late twenties, who were sitting next to and across from each other chatting very loudly. Now the volume of their voices didn't bother me as much as their appearances.

It was as if they all decided one day to go out and buy wigs and eye contacts. And it just didn't look right.

That got me thinking about eyes. I am very easily drawn to a persons eyes. I tried to think about which color I really liked. And I think its between blue and brown.

Blue eyes: Blue eyes intrigue me the most, I think. They almost seem magical and unreal. The different shades of blue, like the really light sky blue, are so amazing that it's almost scary. So if you happen to have blue eyes, and you feel like someone might be watching you... it's probably me... just giving you a heads up.

Brown eyes: I love brown eyes, especially dark brown eyes, because I love how deep and full they seem. When someone has brown eyes it's like their eyes have stories and lives of their own. Brown eyes hold many secrets, brown eyes can smile... brown eyes can bore into one's soul!! Sorry, the last one was a bit much. But anyway, there is something about dark eyes that just draw me into them. And so I have learned to love my own brown eyes.

Hazy eyes: Hazy eyes, or cloudy eyes as I like to describe them, are almost dream-like. It is as if the person was day dreaming too much and actually got stuck in the clouds.

I think I'm most jealous of eyes that change color. Like hazel. They go from light brown to green or get stuck in between. But it can be confusing to someone who might think they know you very well.

Eyes are definitely one of the most beautiful things God blessed humans with. I definitely look for those kind and smiling eyes in a crowd...

... what those ladies in the train had in their eyes were just fakes of a really beautiful thing. Don't wear contacts if you don't need to. Sure we sometimes dream about how we would look if we were born with a different color set of eyes, but we weren't. Our eyes, like everything else we were born with, were chosen just for us.

Your eyes are beautiful! Don't take away or add anything. LOVE YOUR EYES!! :)

Newbie...

So I'm pretty new at this..

My friend was showing me some of his blogs and I got inspired to start writing my own. How many people with actually read this? I have no clue.

I write with the hope that maybe someday someone will read one of more meaningful postings and be inspired and blessed. Not trying to say that I'm magical or anything. Lol. But I think that with the world we live in today, a little encouragement isn't too bad.

I've never really done blogging before. I've written in journals. I have like 4 of those. I love to go back and read that and to see how far I've come from my younger years.

But I'm giving this a go. So...there...LoL

-SimplyFaith :)

Is It Too Hard To Understand?

Is it too hard to understand?

To understand that someone cares,
To understand that someone hears,
To understand that someone knows,
Even when you feel forgotten, ignored, and too embarrassed by things you've done.

Is it too hard to understand?

To understand that someone loves you,
To understand that someone forgives you,
To understand that someone can heal you,
Even when you've been rejected, when you've hurt others and yourself, and when your heart has broken into grains of sand.

Is it really too hard to understand?...

Is it easier to understand,
That this life is but a moment,
A speck in eternity?
Or that what's before us won't last,
not lovers, not toys, not movies, not money, not jobs, or our homes?

Is it easier to understand
that unless you find true joy in the One who created you
that you'll never be truly happy?


I suppose that both are understandable...it's just a matter of what you choose to accept. A life full temporary enjoyment in our ignorance and bliss, or a life with a purpose with an ending that you don't want to miss!

You can live in the moment, and be as open as you want...but in the end it won't matter. Aren't we supposed to "plan for our futures" and look ahead?

I don't really know what this is...but I just jumped out of bed to write it...I hope it gets people thinking...even if you don't have anything to comment on or say..just think about it.

It is your life after all.

(and if there are spelling mistakes I apologize...it's 2am!!)

A Wake Up Call

This is something that I wrote a while ago, but I feel that it is something that is still relevant...

A Wake Up Call

It’s when you begin to see the fruits of your labor or the results of the tests and trials that you’ve been through that you begin to realize how complacent or comfortable you have become with where you’re at. Just because you feel as if you've completed something or did the right thing, you think you're good for a while.

I had a hard time dealing with a situation that I didn’t want to deal with. But God saw fit for me to be apart of this plan! So I went along and did what He led me to do. At first my attitude inside was not godly. But it was as I began to see his plan unfold that I came to realize its beauty and promise.

When this product of this plan began to show favor and began to please the Lord, it started to put me in check. I began to see the flaws in my life and the things I needed to get rid of and change so that I can be the right example and friend that I needed to be.

I learned that it’s not enough to just say you’re a Christian but you have to show growth, maturity, and be a proper example and not half of a good one. God will use us to either be the good example or the example of what not to be. Who do you choose to be?
Thanks to God’s little plan, I have learned that I need to be on top of my game as a Christian.

People will always see me one way, but my motives need to be right also. And I need to stop silly and ungodly addictions, thoughts, or anything of the sort. You don’t know how God will use you, or when, or to whom, just prepare yourself.

We shouldn’t just act or appear as Christians, we need to BE Christians. We are being called to be disciples and to Disciple. Carry that cross! Be encouraged!

"We need to wake up, wake up. Live like God, pour out love..." -Leeland

-SimplyFaith