Calling All Women of God

          Many women today have no respect for themselves. They are walking around showing their body off wanting to look “sexy”. Why? Why do they believe that they have the right to go around showing off what is for their future husband? Why are they going around disrespecting what God created? What happened to the old ideas of how women should act?

          God teaches us women that we should be COMPASSIONATE. Proverbs 11:16 “A kind hearted woman gains respect…”. “She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy.” Proverbs 30:20. Are you being compassionate? I don’t believe that verse 20 is only talking about the financially needy. Be compassionate towards the broken hearted, the people that are spiritually struggling and broken. Reach out and touch their hearts. Pray for them and for what they are struggling with.

          A woman of God should be FAITHFUL! “Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. She brings him good not harm, all the days of her life.” Proverbs 31:11-12. Proverbs 31:28 “Her children arise and call he blessed, her husband also, and he praises her.” I believe that we are called to not only to be faithful to our husbands (or future husbands), but also to our family, friends, and church family. Do not go around and be unfaithful to your friends by spreading rumors and letting small disputes come between you. Build a firm relationship and encourage each other.

          God calls women to be HONORABLE. Proverbs 31:17 “She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks.” “She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue.” Proverbs 31:25-26. God expects us to work hard at what we do and not do things that can bring shame to ourselves, our families, or God.

          Women of God should most importantly be GOD FEARING! Proverbs 31:30 “Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” A woman of God should love God and know that he will provide no matter what is going on in her life at the moment. He has already provided us with so much, and we know that he can take it all away in a heart beat. Fear and love God!

My Testimony

I was raised in church. I went every time the doors were open. I was "saved" when I was 6, but I didn't really understand what having a personal relationship with God was all about. I've been an aunt since I was two and never really had much of a childhood because I was always helping out with my sister's four kids. Me and my mom did not have a very good relationship, but an amazing women at my daycare became like an extra mom to me and I had a wonderful relationship with her. When I was about ten years old my sister's kids started staying with us at night while she was working. My parents didn't pay me a lot of attention and I began to feel neglected and unloved and started at an extremely young age my battle with depression. When I was twelve my extra mom dies of a heart attack, and it turned my life completely upside now. I hadn't realized how much of an impact she had on my life. Around this time I started self harming and turning against God out of anger. The past four  years have been a huge challenge. I've come extremely close to suicide, and have left many scars on my body. Last year I went to camp with my youth group and one of the discussions was about the masks we wear. After that lesson I got the courage to tell my closest friends and youth pastor about what was going on in my life. Since that week at camp I have been trying to stop self harming (it's been over a month since the last time!), but my relationship with God still wasn't where it needed to be. This summer I went to a different camp and it was incredible! I'm on fire for God and haven't lost my passion since we've gotten home. I haven't been this happy in a long time, and I give all the glory to God! I've learned that no matter what is going on you can not turn your back to God.

No Hate Allowed

For some reason today's society gets a thrill out of bullying, hating, and insulting each other. It's a vicious cycle, and once it's started it's hard to end. This lack of love is leading to abuse, self-harm, and suicide. 

     Why does one person believe that they are bigger then someone and have the right to treat another person so horribly? Dd God not create each and everyone of us? Does he not look at each of us and say that we are created perfectly in his eyes? "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him, male and female he created them." Genesis 1:27. 

     It drives me crazy when I see people that claim to be Christians bullying other people. People that have a relationship with God should not care what a person's sexual orientation is, what their ethnicity is, or what a person's beliefs are. We are taught to love everyone regardless. God also tells us that he is love. "Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love." 1John 4:8. 

     To the people that are being hated on remember that you are a work of God. "I praise you because you are fearfully and wonderfully made, your works are wonderful and I know that full well." Psalm 139:14. 

"Spread the love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier." -Mother Teresa

Just Forgive

Whenever someone wrongs us we're told to forgive and forget, but as humans we find that difficult to do or we just flat out don't want to. Human nature tells us to hold a grudge or to plot revenge. Why do we do that? Holding grudges and hating people over something that happened in the past and can't be changed is just stupid, and requires so much more work then just forgetting what happened and forgiving that person. I know it's not an easy thing to do, but lucky for us we have someone that is setting an amazing example for us. Psalm 86:5 says it all "You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you." If God can forgive us every time we sin against him then why can't we forgive the people that have wronged us? In Genesis 50:17 we are told "This is what you are to tell Joseph: I ask you to forgive your brothers the sins and the wrongs they committed in treating you so badly. Now please forgive the sins of the servants of the God of your father.." If Joseph could forgive his brothers for selling him into slavery then why can't we forgive someone for lying to us? It's natural to be mad at first, but forgiveness should be the next step. "There is a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time t build up." Ecclesiastes 3:3. Don't let the lack of ability to forgive destroy your relationships.  "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you." Ephesians 4:32  

True Love

As a teenager I am faced with many definitions of love. At school I hear love thrown around a lot. People say that you show love by sleeping with your boyfriend or girlfriend. To me love is respecting the person you are with and the people you're around. It's putting that person ahead of your selfish wants and desires. Love is being understanding, supportive, and forgiving. That's just my personal belief. "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trust, always hopes, always perseveres." God says that love should be honest, patient, trusting, hopeful, and love should push through hard times.

Afraid of Trials?

Trials are scary things. Normal people don't like them. I'm not just talking about criminal trials or that trial basis that determines if you will get the job or not. I'm talking about the problems you go through in life anything from family problems to losing a job. These are the problems that cause people to either turn to God for help or run away from God. (I'd advice running to God).
My favorite verse about trials is James 1:12 "Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.". Right there God promises that if we stand firm in our trials God will give us the life he promised- the promise of eternal life in Heaven.
Trials are scary and it's hard to understand why we're going through them while we're going through them. Speaking from experience there is a reason that we go through everything we go through. During hard time DO NOT turn against God, stand FIRM and GROW.

Why do I Believe?

       As a student at a public high school I am faced with many views on religion. We have Atheist, Agnostics, Hindus, Christians, and unfortunately some Satanists. This leads to many questions about why I believe what I believe. My answer is always the same simple answer. Because it makes sense.

          I believe in God the Father as our Creator and Jesus Christ as our Savior. I do not believe in evolution although I do find the theory of evolution interesting. I don’t believe in evolution because it makes no sense and there are too many unanswered questions. Where did the gas and the speck of dust come from that caused the Big Bang? If we evolved from other creatures then why are those creatures still here and why haven’t we evolved again? The Christian religion bluntly answers that question. Genesis 1:1 flat out says that “In the beginning God created the Heavens and the Earth.” All through out the first chapter in Genesis the creation of the world and man and the animals of the Earth are explained. There are no unanswered questions about where we or the Earth came from.

          Many people say that to believe in God is to believe in a fairy tale because it takes so much imagination. To me it takes a whole lot more imagination to believe that I came from a monkey then to believe God spoke me into existence. I believe that everyone has the right to believe what they want, but I believe what makes the most sense to me. A loving God that sent his son to die for me, so that I may have eternal life with him.