GRACEABIDES

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" 

Here I am. Send me!

If you are a high school student willing to give a summer to the Lord, here is a fantastic and trustworthy ministry! 

What I am beginning to not understand is the definition of being a Christian. You should not go to websites for the definition of "Christianity" because it is not accurate. You can't seek the definition of Christianity through society, they did not come up with the definition. You have to find the definition through the place where it was named, the Bible. This is about to get deep and I realize most people are going to misinterpret what I am saying. I get it. But I know my friends that know me well are the ones who trust me in that I am not saying any of this as a means to look down upon anyone... What I get very annoyed about are the "christians" that say that God loves them no matter what. True statement. You need to understand that God is PERFECT though and any sin from stealing a dollar, to murdering a person, is seen the same through His eyes. There is no such thing as one sin being greater than another. Humanity claimed that statement...and it is SO very wrong.  Here is what I am getting at, if you say that you are a Christ follower, (I am not going to use the term "christian" because that term is misrepresented way too much) you believe everything that is stated in the Bible. ALL statements. You do not pick which statements you like and throw out all the other ones that you do not like. When you become a Christ follower you have the new desire to seek out perfection in Christ because you hate all sin as much as He does because YOU have Him living inside you.  Several weeks ago I went on a retreat and these two statements stuck out to me... 1. We see grace as an excuse for our sin. -- Meaning that we compromise our sins by saying, "Oh, it is okay I committed that sin, Jesus forgives me now." and then continue committing that same sin over and over. 2. Own YOUR sin, not anyone else! Do not also try blame shifting it onto someone, something, or some circumstance either.  With all that being said, I am not given the authority to judge wether you are "christian" or not, but I sure am trying to show love just as a mother who disciplines her child. God gave ME this command in Galatians 6:1 "Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should RESTORE THAT PERSON GENTLY." And now, in the most loving way with no hatred toward anyone in my heart I say this... Marriage is for a man and a woman. Genesis 2:24 and 1 Corinthians 7:1-40 talks specifically about this. I love you all, but this sin breaks my heart because it perverts the 2nd greatest gift that God has given to us... The first being our eternal life through His Son. 

My final word of encouragement is this...

Galatians 5:16-17  So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. 

as well as

Jews for Jesus Ministry Website. Features publications, media, and resources that give evidence to Y'shua (Jesus) being the Jewish Messiah.

THE PLEDGE 

The end of last year I chose to surrender my Summer to Christ. Not necessarily JUST my Summer, but all of my future decisions too. My desire is to choose HIS way over MY way and to prayerfully consider the options that The Lord allows to be placed before me.  It's not too late for you to do the same. I try to remind myself of this structured prayer. 

Dear God, I surrender myself to you and desire the power through your spirit to go where YOU want me to go, do what YOU want me to do, say what YOU want me to say, and give whatever YOU want me to give. 

This post is not just for women but also for men.

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I have become disgusted with the perversion of the word "beautiful," especially in American culture today. Stop infecting the minds of teens, young adults, and adults by telling them that a "beautiful" girl is defined by what cup size she wears, how much she weighs,  how many guys she has slept with, how well she "grinds on the floor," how much skin she can show in 32 degree weather, how much make up is caked on her face, and how long she can go on those things called "stilettos." NONE of these qualities even DESCRIBE the definition of beautiful. Culture did not invent the word "beautiful," so why do we allow them to define it? Beauty is not what you wear on the outside, it is what you wear on the inside... Confidence. Integrity. Kindness. Love. Patience... 

The same goes for you men. American culture has defined an "attractive" man as someone that pumps iron every day at the gym, how low he can sag his pants, and the other points that culture screams at you that do not need to be stated on social media... 

Tonight I walked into the living room and E NEWS was on. Within the first five minutes I observed, sex was already being promoted. Aesthetic pictures of celebrities plastered themselves on my living room TV. I easily concluded in that short amount of time that I had seen enough and I proceeded to lay a question before the other observer... "Why are you watching this?" My prompt to asking this question was motivated by the frustration towards the societal perversion of beauty.

For years, I have let my eye decide the desire of my heart when all along my heart should have been deciding the desire for my eye.

First off, thank you Eric Rodgers for being our EMCEE over the past several days. Thank you also Matt Papa for leading us in worship, as well as all the wonderful speakers, sound men, organizers, campus leaders and hotel staff for making the past few days possible.

This past retreat had me longing for more wisdom. I grew on so many levels and that is saying a LOT since I grew up as a staff kid and was able to attend almost every conference placed before me. Because of this, I have known Bible concepts in my head for years, but gradually became frustrated because I knew that my head and heart's understanding of certain subjects were not on the same page. 

As for sharing my experiences from encounter, I can't allow myself to speak of my specific ENCOUNTERS tonight (I'd be up till the morning). 

I mainly just wanted to write this as a "thank you".

2 Corinthians 6:14

I know for most, seeking council is hard. Wether it is social anxiety, past experiences, or even pride that deters someone from seeking wisdom; Satin will pursue whatever weakness you have to keep you from seeking wisdom/council. But "... God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline" ( 2 Timothy 1:7 ). 

Remember, and I say this from experience...