Gossip: Why I Hate It

Gossip. I hate it. It's the little insulting comments that are made about someone behind their back, and makes up for a large portion of all personal drama. There are so many things wrong with this. First, if there's something you don't like about someone, go straight to them and try to work it out, or otherwise, keep it to yourself. Gossip is just cowardly. And not only that, if you let someone gossip to you, you're just feeding the problem. If someone is willing to gossip to you, they will most likely also gossip about you. It's just a pointless, destructive habit that brings down the gossiper and everyone gossiped about into a downward spiral.
If you gossip about someone, chances are you don't realize how much that can damage them. It shows that they are worth so little that you can critisize them any which way you like. It's insensitive and makes you look like a jerk, plain and simple.

I know that was pretty short, but that's all I can think to say about it at this point.

A Love Letter From God

Well, I know it's the middle of the night, but I felt like God really wanted me to share this now. It's a letter from God. I didn't make this up, every word of it was from God. I validated that it wasn't my own thoughts making this. Anyway, here it is:

"Hello. I would ask you how you're doing, but I already know. :)
I just wanted to let you know that I still love you. There's nothing you can do to make Me love you any less. I've been with you your entire life. I've been watching you grow up. You've turned into quite an amazing person. You're perfect. Remember that. I created you, and I don't make useless things. You're beautiful. I know it may sound weird, but you truly are. I fashioned you from birth to be a fantastic creation. You are intelligent. You're funny. I love you and I made you that way for a reason.

You may be losing hope, but I can give you what you need. I'm always right beside you. When you fall down, I'm there to pick you up. When you cry, I wipe away your tears. You are my child. How does it feel, knowing your dad is the Almighty Creator of the universe? I'm always there when you need me, though you don't always look for me.

I. Love. You.
It's an inseperable love that I will always have for you.

Use your gifts to My glory, and I will reward you immensely. That's not a bribe. That's a promise.

I have so much more to say to you, but it will have to wait for another time.

Just one more thing: I really do love you."


I feel like there's someone specific that needs to see this. If it's you, then I want to tell you that I think God says that He loves you so many times for a reason.

Also, there's something I found interesting was where God told me to write "It's an inseperable that I will always have for you." I wouldn't have chosen the word "inseperable". It seems like awkward wording to me. But I looked it up, and the dictionary defines it as "Unwilling to be separated; usually seen together".
You know what that says about God's love for you? It's present wherever you go. It's a part of you that can't be removed. That should help show you how much God really loves you. :)

Well, that's all I have to say. Goodnight.

Respect and Honor

I have a bracelet that I wear every day. It says "Respect and Honor". I use it as a daily reminder to treat the women in my life with the respect and honor that they deserve.
In case you hadn't already figured it out, this post is about respect and honor.

Every day, people show a startling apathy towards other people of the opposite sex. I say something needs to be done about that.
God created men and women to live in harmony with each other, to fill needs in each other that they didn't even know were there.

Men-
Always, always, ALWAYS show kindness and chivalry towards the women in your life. The small things make all the difference. Strive to treat the women in your life with the same chivalry and dignity that you would treat someone else's wife, because they are someone else's future wife. You may think to yourself, "But what if fill-in-the-blank actually is my future wife?" Well, then, still treat her as though she belongs to someone else, because she does. Until she is married, she belongs to (and is the daughter of) God Himself, and believe me, as scary as some girls' older brothers or fathers can be, God created them and put that drive to protect their women in their hearts. That shielding originated from Him. What does that say about God?
I'm not trying to scare you off from ever being in a relationship, but remember, that woman is a priceless jewel that God has place in your life. Don't mar and devalue her to where her future husband (even if it s you) cannot fully appreciate her worth.

"A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies." -Proverbs 31:10

Women-
Don't settle for anything less than the very best. You don't need to flaunt yourself to get attention, though so often, it is portrayed that that's the only way. If you are willing to wait and keep yourself untainted by the impurities life will throw at you, you will meet a man who is willing to treat you like the princess you are. God knows what you need, even if you don't, and He will provide. He loves you and wants the very best for you, so please, protect your heart until the very best comes to you.
Until you know what or who the very best is for you, please, protect yourself. Don't allow yourself to be devalued and belittled by those who merely want to use you. God will provide the best, and He will do it to His own timing.
I don't know when God will reveal to you the very best, but I can promise you that if you actively guard your heart and seek God through it all, He will give you all the strength you need to wait it out.

I know that this is being posted as Valentine's Day is coming up, but that's just a coincidence. I felt like I should send this message out to all who have yet to meet their future spouse.

God bless.

Love

Sorry it's been a while since my last post. I've been with my youth group at a weekend retreat, and while I was there, I grew much closer to God and learned a lot about him, and I will have several future blog posts regarding what I learned.

But right now, there's something that I really want to state my thoughts on. It's something that I've always held fast in my opinions on, and this weekend has helped emphasize why I have the opinions I do.
In short, this post is about love.
I'm almost 15 years old. I've never been in a romantic relationship. I've never kissed a girl.
Don't get me wrong, this doesn't mean that there aren't times when I want a girlfriend. It doesn't mean that there aren't times where I look around and become slightly jealous when I see couples all around me.

It means that I have to chosen to wait for dating, and to wait for a girl that I believe could be my future wife.
I have several reasons for this.

First off, I've always been an all-or-nothing kind of guy. If I date at 14, for argument's sake, let's say that I do find the girl that I will eventually marry. If I date her at 14, there's nothing I can really do about it at that point. If anything, it's just that many more years I have to wait with the knowledge of not being able to do anything. I'd much rather just be friends with "the one" and get to know her better from that standpoint.

Second off, I want to keep my heart whole and pure for my future wife. If I date at this point, that's just that many more heartbreaks I'll have to endure and that much less of my heart that I'll have set aside for my wife. I don't want that. My wife will be the most important woman in my life, so I want to make sure that my heart is ready for such a person.

Third, not only am I choosing to protect my future wife, I want to protect myself as well. I don't want to have to deal with the drama and trauma of break-up after break-up. I want any relationship I enter to be genuine, and have it end up to where if the girl I'm dating isn't intended to be my future wife, she and I can still be friends without it being awkward.

I want to be prepared for my future wife. God has already placed in my heart a love specifically set aside for my future wife. Honestly, I don't understand how that's possible. I don't know what she looks like. I don't know if she's blonde or brunette, redhead or otherwise. I don't know what she enjoys doing. I don't know her personality. But it's okay, because I will love her anyway. And there is one thing that I know to be true: She will love God with the same intensity and devotion that I do.
I am also praying that whoever she has in her life will treat her with respect; that her father and other male figures in her life will treat her with the same respect and love that I will. On the flipside, I am also careful to treat every girl in my life as though she were someone else's wife.

I love my wife, even though I have never even met her.

Useful Tips for Life

If you want useful (and sometimes completely irrelevant) tips, this is the place to go! Use this list as a reference to all problems you may encounter!

1. Coffee is hot.
2. If you see ninjas, it means you're about to die.
3. If you want to be successful in life, you should go somewhere else.
4. Do not try to iron a plastic shower curtain.
5. Do not use a hairdryer in a bathtub.
6. Do not leave a small child unattended in a bathtub.
7. Do not use a hairdryer on a small child in a bathtub.
8. Life isn't fair.
10. Sometimes life will try to cheat you out of something. For example, did you notice I skipped number 9?
11. If life tries to cheat you out of something, refer to tip #8 and get over it.
12. Always follow directions given on signs.

13. Do not read this tip. It is the tip that follows after an unlucky number.

14. If you read the last tip, quickly pluck a four-leaf clover, place it in your hair, and throw salt over your left shoulder. (Or was it right?)

15. If you really want to develop hand-eye coordination, don't play video games. Buy an etch-a-sketch.

16. Hugs, not drugs.

17. If modern slang is used incorrectly, it can lead to a punch in the face. For example, if you call someone a "phat ridiculous dope", you'll get what is referred to as a "shiner".

18. If you feel like you might throw up, lie down on your back and position your arms above your head. This will either make you fell better, or make you throw up and get it over with.

19. If you watch Jersey Shore................... Get help.

20. If you have to choose between the Grinch and a seasick crocodile, always go with the seasick crocodile. 

21. Saying "I'm offended" doesn't give you any more power over someone else.

22. An "omnomnom-agon" looks like this:

Well, that's all for now, mainly because that's all that I could think of. 

Copy/Paste Faith?

(This was originally posted as a note on facebook, but I feel like thisstill needs to be shared.)

"Prove your faith, and make this your status!" 

We've all seen statuses like this on facebook. They try to convince us that to be a christian, we have to take what we just read and make it our own status. Sometimes, they even try to guilt us into doing so, and say things like "Jesus knows you read this! If you deny Him now, then He will deny you in front of His Father in Heaven!!"

Why is it that we feel like we have to do these things to prove our worth? If we're christians, they will know us by our love! You know the old phrase, "actions speak louder than words"? It's very true, and I think it fits in perfectly here. Don't get me wrong, facebook can be a wonderful way to connect with people and witness, but so often, it's improperly used. Instead of personally sharing the love of Christ Jesus with people, we create pages titled "Let's see how many true Christians are on FB! Press 'like' if Jesus is your Savior!" (And yes, that's an actual page on facebook) We get sidetracked with the religion of it all, and in the process, forget about the relationship. Jesus didn't come and die what was considered the worst and most dishonorable death imaginable just so we could read about it; He did it so that we could have a chance at joining Him in heaven, and to show us that he loved us so much, that he would literally die for us before we even knew who He was, much less loved Him. 

There's a boy named Jonathan. He lives in Eastern Europe. As of my posting this, he has a matter of days before he turns 16 and recieves his "freedom". This basically means that he will be kicked out of the orphanage he lives in with little more than the clothes on his back. He needs someone to step forth and adopt him before that happens, because he could easily die on the streets.

The thing is, this sort of thing isn't uncommon. This happens all the time there.

I also know a man who has completely uprooted his family to move to Cambodia so that he can help save children out of the sex slave trade there. Why is he doing this? Because God told him to. God put it on his heart to do this, and has given him a love for these children that I personally cannot fully comprehend. 

This is God's love. And the thing is, it doesn't take moving across the globe or adopting a kid to show it. It can be something as simple as standing up for the one kid who's made fun of at school, or talking to someone who everyone else avoids. Jesus, the only perfect person to ever walk the earth, spent most of his time with thieves, prostitutes, and drunkards. Why did he do this? "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick." (Matthew 9:12)

Jesus showed love to everyone He came in contact with, because He genuinely did love them. I'm not asking you to fall in love with every person on the street, because that's a little crazy. (although there are some movies out there that try to do that....) Just show love to people. It doesn't take that much of an effort. All it takes is to break out of your comfort zone and do what everyone else doesn't want to do. 

"But if we are the body,

Why aren't His arms reaching?

Why aren't His hands healing?

Why aren't His words teaching?

And if we are the body,

Why aren't His feet going?

Why is His love not showing them there is a way?"

(From what I've been told, there has been a family that has stepped up to adopt Jonathan).

Being the better person

You know the saying "cheaters never win"? It's not entirely true. Sure, in the long run, it doesn't actually count as winning, but if there's no one there to call a cheater out on it, then they will win. You just have to know when to give it up to keep the peace. As a Christian, I have to be the one willing to change, the one willing to back down, even when I know that I'm right. Why? Because I'm supposed to show love to everyone, no matter what circumstances I'm under; no matter what kind of problem I'm up against. I've even found myself in situations where the person on the other side of the argument is also a Christian, but even then, I should be the one willing to back down first. It's not about trying to guilt the other person; that mentality won't help and won't last. It's not about trying to look like the better person; odds are, no one's going to notice. Rather, it's about showing the same love and Jesus showed for me when he faced the ultimate injustice of being condemned to die a horrible death, when he had literally lived a perfect life.
I know this isn't easy. I don't always succeed at this. It's impossible to maintain this kind of love and compassion on human strength and willpower alone. To do it, one has to be willing to humble themself and and ask God to give them the strength, because they know that it can't be done on their own. I can tell you right now that if you are sincere in asking for this, God will grant it to you, not only because he enjoys blessing us, but He wants us to use those blessings to help others as well.