About two weeks ago, I was riding back from a Gym Master tour and I saw that one of my guy friends was going to watch a movie. He didn't have anyone sitting next to him so I asked if I could watch too. He said of course and asked me what I wanted to watch. My response was "nothing bad".
He was like "Well does it look like I'm the type to watch bad movies?" He then proceeded to turn on a comedy movie. It said the f word twice, showed about 2 sex scenes, and made some inappropriate jokes.. he paused the movie, looked at me, and asked "What do you consider bad?" He said that this was probably an R rated movie and that we could switch movies. I felt bad but I said that'd be cool if we could watch something else.
Today I read an article from SusieMag about movies, sex, and purity. There is a statistic that shows for every hour watched of sexual content in movies, teens are five times as likely to lose their virginity within six years. This should be very concerning.
If you know me well, you might make fun of me because I will normally watch Pg-13 movies but I close my eyes when couples make out or during sex scenes. You might think this is funny or just cute, but I honestly don't appreciate these scenes. I believe that kissing and sex are special. Not just for everyone to see, but reserved for one special person. I believe the more you look at sexual pictures of the hot girls and hot guys in the movies doing all this stuff, you will begin to want that in your life. It's unrealistic and stupid, to me it's kinda like porn. Tell me honestly after watching a sex scene with Taylor Lautner, or whoever you like in it, that you don't secretly want the guy you have sex with to look and act like that. That's not fair. And it's wrong!We talk about the dangers of pornography- but that's what these movies are. They're messing with our heads. You wonder why people are so perverted these days, making jokes about everything, it's because of the media. Clearly, the media has changed our generations' minds, perverting what is right and wrong (especially in relationships).
So what does God have to say about this? And what should this mean to those of us who want pure minds? Proverbs 4:23 says "Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life." Purity is so much more than saying no to sex, it's about your thoughts, your minds, and your actions focusing on Christ. Should I start avoiding Pg-13 movies altogether? I'm not for sure yet, but I'm definitely considering it. I want a pure heart and mind and the media makes that a challenge. I know that choosing not to watch Pg-13 movies will cost me some "popularity" or "pleasure" from this world- but I know that I am called to be not of this world, but of Christ. He will reward our efforts in following Him.
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Jesus I'm so in love with you
Jesus I'm so in love with you.
Like that outta the ballpark, homerun feeling that gives you total happiness- that kinda feeling
Like those romance stories where the guy rescues you and carries you off to the castle- that kinda feeling
Like when your laying out on kayaks with your bestfriend talkin bout life and see a shooting star- that kinda feeling.
And I know that feelings do not make relationships. Feelings do not determine love, nor should love or obedience be determined by feelings.
But when you have those feelings you can enjoy them, you can praise God!
Because our God is a Spiritual God, but also a sensual God- He wants you to feel Him and know Him through words, smell, taste, touch, and physical contact.
I once asked my youth pastor on senior survival why I didn't feel God. It was clear that my classmates around me felt Him. We were up on a mountain and we were doing team bonding activities, but I just didn't Feel God. He told me this, Your spiritual walk with Christ is going to be a roller coaster- ups and downs. When your up praise God for who He is and what He has done. When your low remember those highs and praise God that He will raise you up again.
I'm just so grateful right now for all that Christ has done for me in my life, especially in the past year. I feel like I've changed a lot in the past year and grown so much spiritually. Like 1 Corinthians 3:1 talks about infants- in the spiritual walk- I feel like that's who I used to be. I used to do the right things, pray at the right times- and be good. But being good is not what God's about.
God wants a personal, crazy passionate relationship with Him. I know I don't have it figured out- my walk with Him is so messed up sometimes! I hate the things I do. But God is changing me. God is not giving up on me. This past year being at Southern, God has shown me that I only need Him. I need nothing else but God. He has shown me that a true relationship with Him is so much bigger and intimate than I ever imagined. He desires every part of me. He wants me to surrender my independence, my personality, my dreams.. and in return He says: You are mine. And I will give you perfect peace.
I'm so in love with God. His ways are so pure. His love so gentle. His power so mysterious. I'm in awe of Him.
Like that outta the ballpark, homerun feeling that gives you total happiness- that kinda feeling
Like those romance stories where the guy rescues you and carries you off to the castle- that kinda feeling
Like when your laying out on kayaks with your bestfriend talkin bout life and see a shooting star- that kinda feeling.
And I know that feelings do not make relationships. Feelings do not determine love, nor should love or obedience be determined by feelings.
But when you have those feelings you can enjoy them, you can praise God!
Because our God is a Spiritual God, but also a sensual God- He wants you to feel Him and know Him through words, smell, taste, touch, and physical contact.
I once asked my youth pastor on senior survival why I didn't feel God. It was clear that my classmates around me felt Him. We were up on a mountain and we were doing team bonding activities, but I just didn't Feel God. He told me this, Your spiritual walk with Christ is going to be a roller coaster- ups and downs. When your up praise God for who He is and what He has done. When your low remember those highs and praise God that He will raise you up again.
I'm just so grateful right now for all that Christ has done for me in my life, especially in the past year. I feel like I've changed a lot in the past year and grown so much spiritually. Like 1 Corinthians 3:1 talks about infants- in the spiritual walk- I feel like that's who I used to be. I used to do the right things, pray at the right times- and be good. But being good is not what God's about.
God wants a personal, crazy passionate relationship with Him. I know I don't have it figured out- my walk with Him is so messed up sometimes! I hate the things I do. But God is changing me. God is not giving up on me. This past year being at Southern, God has shown me that I only need Him. I need nothing else but God. He has shown me that a true relationship with Him is so much bigger and intimate than I ever imagined. He desires every part of me. He wants me to surrender my independence, my personality, my dreams.. and in return He says: You are mine. And I will give you perfect peace.
I'm so in love with God. His ways are so pure. His love so gentle. His power so mysterious. I'm in awe of Him.
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
The Well
Today is Wednesday, February 27th and on Friday at about 4am, I will be leaving with Gym Masters for a mission trip to the Dominican Republic. Prayers would be much appreciated! I will be gone for about 10 days so this might be one of my last blog posts for a bit, but I will be taking a journal with me along the trip. Supposedly this is a mission trip like no other :) but coach is getting me a little scared. Many years they have gone much of the team has fallen to sickness throwing up and diarrhea and had to get ivs. We will be traveling around the Dominican Republic doing gymnastics shows, sharing Jesus' love, and doing random service projects. It's exciting to see how God will be leading and what He will do. I pray you all have a blessed spring break as well.
This is a special devotional to you from the book My Utmost for His Highest by Oswold Chambers. I sincerely urge you to read this book because it is very powerful.
"Where then do You get that living water? —John 4:11
The reason some of us are such poor examples of Christianity is that we have failed to recognize that Christ is almighty. We have Christian attributes and experiences, but there is no abandonment or surrender to Jesus Christ. When we get into difficult circumstances, we impoverish His ministry by saying, “Of course, He can’t do anything about this.” We struggle to reach the bottom of our own well, trying to get water for ourselves. Beware of sitting back, and saying, “It can’t be done.” You will know it can be done if you will look to Jesus. The well of your incompleteness runs deep, but make the effort to look away from yourself and to look toward Him.
So where is your well of hurt or trouble inside your heart, your scars that are limiting Christ? No matter what you are going through, God is stronger. No matter how big your giants and enemies are, Your God is bigger. No matter how weak your flesh is, Our God is Able.
Don't put limits on God. No trouble is too big for Him. Trust Him to surrender your life too. Other people may have let you down, but God never will.
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Prayer
Oswold Chambers writes “The reason
many of us leave off praying and become hard towards God is because we have
only a sentimental interest in prayer.” The word sympathetic according to the
Merriam dictionary means “resulting from feeling rather than reason or thought.”
When you pray, do you actually think about getting close to Christ and talking
with Him? Is the goal of your prayer to commune with God himself and come in
contact with his heart and mind? Or is it simply a feeling that you should pray
or something you were taught how to do while young?
Chambers says “we hurl our own
petitions at God’s throne and dictate to Him what we wish for Him to do”.
Unfortunately, I identify with these types of prayers myself and these prayers
are not worshipping God nor seeking to form the mind of Christ. Chambers
questions “Are we living in a holy relationship with Christ or are we hard and
dogmatic?” I did not understand the word dogmatic so I looked it up and it
means “characterized by or given to the expression of opinions very strongly or
positively as if they were facts.” God does not want us to pray to him with all
our requests. That is treating God like he is Santa Clause. God wants us to
seek communion with His mind. God wants to talk with us. He wants to develop a
true friendship. God does His part in listening to us, but are we listening and
seeking Him?
Chambers writes that intercession and
worship must go together because one is not possible without the other. If this
is true, then have I not really been worshipping before because I was not in true
intercession? Intercession means that we rouse ourselves up to get the mind of
Christ about the one for whom we pray. Chambers says intercession is a “work
that has no snare”.
Where are you?
The more I seek you the more I find you.
The more I find you the more I love you.
I want to sit at your feet.
Drink from the cup in your hand.
Lay back against you and breathe.
Feel your heartbeat.
This love is so deep.
It's more than I can stand.
I melt in your peace.
It's overwhelming.
Your love is overwhelming me and oh my love, your love is overwhelming me, holding me.
Deuteronomy 4:29 But if from there you seek the Lord your 'God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.
Isaiah 26:3 You will give him perfect peace, him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.
I believe that chaos is one of Satan's favorite weapons because to see God, we need to be still. We need to trust, and we have to slow down to talk to Him. Our God is spiritual. He loves you and the more you take time to get to know him, the more you will dance in His love and want Him. I encourage you to just clear your mind for just ten minutes. Pray to God, meditate in His love, this song today brought me to tears because the last few days have been so stressful. I have been getting angry and frustrated because I'm so tired, I'm so wore down. But this song made me realize how much I need Jesus and how much I love Him. I can't wait to hug God in heaven. This song gives me so much peace. I pray right now for everyone who reads this- that YOU will find peace right now in GOD who loves you more than you can ever imagine BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD Psalm 46:10. Peace I leave with you sisters of God.
Sunday, February 24, 2013
Meaningless
Today I feel unmotivated. I am trying to do everything possible in my power to avoid doing my homework. My desires to get good grades seem to have faded this year. I mean I know I need good grades for PT school, but other than that, I just don't seem to care as much anymore.
There's so much going on: Gym Masters, school, friends, possible boyfriends, volleyball, God stuff, and social life.. sometimes it seems really overwhelming. I have realized that in the past week I haven't spent much quality time with God. And I miss God- I need God.
James 4:8 Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world.
When I die how will people remember me?
When I die where will I go?
What will God think of me?
Will God call me "friend" or will He say "I never knew you."
Matthew 7:21-23 Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
It takes time to build a relationship and it takes sacrifice as well. We cannot serve two masters for our God is a jealous God. We say we love Him more but is He the one whom we really spend the most time? Is He our desire that we think and dream about as we go to sleep every night? God wants your life, He wants your time, He wants your focus.
Friends and popularity will fade.
After you graduate not many people will care about your 4.0.
But what you do for God- you might change a life forever-
Or you might waste your entire life..
So is your life meaningless? Get God before it's too late.
There's so much going on: Gym Masters, school, friends, possible boyfriends, volleyball, God stuff, and social life.. sometimes it seems really overwhelming. I have realized that in the past week I haven't spent much quality time with God. And I miss God- I need God.
James 4:8 Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world.
When I die how will people remember me?
When I die where will I go?
What will God think of me?
Will God call me "friend" or will He say "I never knew you."
Matthew 7:21-23 Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
It takes time to build a relationship and it takes sacrifice as well. We cannot serve two masters for our God is a jealous God. We say we love Him more but is He the one whom we really spend the most time? Is He our desire that we think and dream about as we go to sleep every night? God wants your life, He wants your time, He wants your focus.
Friends and popularity will fade.
After you graduate not many people will care about your 4.0.
But what you do for God- you might change a life forever-
Or you might waste your entire life..
So is your life meaningless? Get God before it's too late.
Saturday, February 23, 2013
Captivating
When I was a girl my daddy showed me I was captivating.
My brother taught me to be tough, to fight, and to compete.
My friends told me to save them and I did.
Guys never talked to me- they didn't give me much attention.
I was tough so I didn't choose to care or even try.
I was strong enough on my own and didn't need a boyfriend.
Some older guys in my life gave me attention- it was a good feeling.
But then they destroyed my trust
I said I don't need you because boys only hurt people
I looked around at my friends who had been hurt so bad and I didn't want that
I was a good girl anyways
I was a strong girl and I could help people I could play sports and I could make friends
Who needs boys?
I had some amazing guys come into my life and tell me I was beautiful and worthy
I trusted them but I didn't believe them
I kept hiding, because I was afraid
I didn't want to have to trust guys, to get hurt, to be the victim, to lose my "strength"
I tried to be the hero
Some guys were there for me and they proved to be best friends
They helped me learn to have confidence
They helped me not be afraid to be myself
They helped me dance
When I learned to dance, I began to smile more
I've always smiled but I began to smile because I was truly happy
I didn't want to be a "suck up" or a "goody goody"
I wasn't afraid anymore
I got comfortable and it was great
Then God said Go
And I said why? He took me to a new place... AGAIN
With new beginnings comes new things
God made it good
God said You are beautiful not because of them but because of me
You are worthy not because of what you do but because you are my child
You are loved not because of your friends but because of my heart
I danced, I danced alone sometimes
I danced with new friends and new guys
God has given me freedom.
He has taught me to trust
He has taught me that I can't be my own Hero
God wants to be my hero
And because God is my hero I will dance
What women rightly long for is spiritual and moral initiative from a man, not spiritual and moral domination.- John Piper
Titus 2:3-5 Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled.
Psalms 27:4
One [thing] have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple.
Psalms 29:2 - Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness
My brother taught me to be tough, to fight, and to compete.
My friends told me to save them and I did.
Guys never talked to me- they didn't give me much attention.
I was tough so I didn't choose to care or even try.
I was strong enough on my own and didn't need a boyfriend.
Some older guys in my life gave me attention- it was a good feeling.
But then they destroyed my trust
I said I don't need you because boys only hurt people
I looked around at my friends who had been hurt so bad and I didn't want that
I was a good girl anyways
I was a strong girl and I could help people I could play sports and I could make friends
Who needs boys?
I had some amazing guys come into my life and tell me I was beautiful and worthy
I trusted them but I didn't believe them
I kept hiding, because I was afraid
I didn't want to have to trust guys, to get hurt, to be the victim, to lose my "strength"
I tried to be the hero
Some guys were there for me and they proved to be best friends
They helped me learn to have confidence
They helped me not be afraid to be myself
They helped me dance
When I learned to dance, I began to smile more
I've always smiled but I began to smile because I was truly happy
I didn't want to be a "suck up" or a "goody goody"
I wasn't afraid anymore
I got comfortable and it was great
Then God said Go
And I said why? He took me to a new place... AGAIN
With new beginnings comes new things
God made it good
God said You are beautiful not because of them but because of me
You are worthy not because of what you do but because you are my child
You are loved not because of your friends but because of my heart
I danced, I danced alone sometimes
I danced with new friends and new guys
God has given me freedom.
He has taught me to trust
He has taught me that I can't be my own Hero
God wants to be my hero
And because God is my hero I will dance
What women rightly long for is spiritual and moral initiative from a man, not spiritual and moral domination.- John Piper
Song of Solomon 4:1 Behold, you are beautiful, my love, behold, you are beautiful! Your eyes are doves behind your veil. Your hair is like a flock of goats leaping down the slopes of Gilead.
Titus 2:3-5 Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled.
Proverbs 31:30 Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised
1 Peter 3:3-4 Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sightPsalms 27:4
One [thing] have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple.
Psalms 29:2 - Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness
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