Jane Doe's Secret

 Sometimes it is so crazy to ask for peace. Especially during these times where everywhere you look there is strife and conflict. There is not a single news story, Facebook post, or Instagram story, that isn't conflicting to someone. Then there are those people who viciously attack people online just for the thrill of it. It is sickening. My friends, why is it so hard for Christians to promote peace? We belong to a God who is the ultimate peacemaker. In order to save us from His wrath and His anger, He sent His Son to die for our many sins, He sent His Son to be the ultimate sacrifice so that we would be at peace with God and His anger would not burn against us anymore. We are told to live like Christ because His example of life will bring about the happiness we all pursue and the prosperity we all want. Yet we couldn't be more divided! The church could not be more divided! We are the body of Christ, yet every body part seems to want to do its own thing. What we forget is that ...

 During these times, it is almost impossible not to feel alone. Loneliness can lead to depression, anxiety, and mental instability. When we are with friends, there are still times when we feel lonely, especially when we feel misunderstood or unheard of by these friends. It can be hard to truly feel like you are not alone when your friends third wheel you, or they do something that betrays your trust. Our world is full of sin, we are all human, so when we trust another human, we cannot fully and completely trust them, for there will be times that they let us down in big ways. Because of this, everyone feels completely alone sometimes. As Christians, there is only one person we can fully trust, and that is God. Sometimes we don't even fully trust Him. But He is always faithful and He is always there when we need Him. When we don't feel lonely, we tend to stray in our minds from God, we push Him away thinking that we don't need Him because there is something on earth that can ...

 Do you ever find yourself wondering if you really have to work? Those days that come that you just want to be lazy, sit back and enjoy the day without a care in the world, but in the end, having to get up and get moving. Sometimes doing work can seem so pointless and trivial. We try to push the work onto others. I know I tend to do that sometimes. But every task has a purpose and every chore has a reason. Imagine if we choose not to do our daily routines. Sitting around being lazy in everything. By the end of the day, even I would be sick of the boring dullness of being lazy.  When we clean or work we are bringing cleanliness not only to our houses and bodies but also to our souls. Living in squalor can only lead to ill health and more. There are plenty of ways for a person to actually enjoy the jobs they have been sent out to do. My favorite is playing music. I love it when one of my favorite songs comes on and I invite the broom to dance with me. Whatever the situation, doi...

 When I worship, I tend to find myself wondering if I am giving my full effort into my faith with God. Many times I go about a day without even thinking, "is what I am doing pleasing to God?" It can be hard to truly be faithful in worship to my Father. Worship is about more than just singing songs in church, with hands high in the air, swaying back and forth. Worship is about letting God know just how much we appreciate all He has done for us, and He has done a lot.  Sometimes it is hard to remember that, especially when I am going through a rough time. It reminds me of that song "Even if" by MercyMe.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6fA35Ved-Y   This song says it all; "it's easy to sing when there is nothing to bring me down, what will I say when I am held to the flames like I am right now. I know your able and I know you can save through the fire with your mighty hand but even if you don't my hope is you alone." When I reminded of the struggles ...

 As Christians, we are taught by Jesus Christ to treat everyone equally, but as humans, there are times that we find ourselves treating certain people a certain way. We do this because we believe that they are not equal to us. Throughout history, the United States of America has been known as the slowest country to accept differences as equal to their own. Even those who claimed to be Christians were the fiercest fighter against treating certain groups of people as if they were equal to us. Although our country was built on the principles of equality and freedom, no one was truly equal and free. We may have corrected some of our past mistakes regarding this subject, but there is still that meter of inequality in this world today. Whether we believe it or not, we Christians still have problems accepting everyone as equals.  Have you ever realized that you are more cautious around someone of color than someone who is white? There is still that distinction between people of color...

Endurance. When reading the Old Testament we watch as God endures through all the mistakes the Israelites made. He provides solutions and saves them over and over again. But the endurance of the Israelites was always short-lived. They always fell back into their old sins, married into nations close to them, and worshiped false gods. They would be captured, they would cry out to God, God would hear them and save them, they would be set free, then after a short period of following their faith in Him, they would return to their old sinful ways. Why was it so hard for the Israelites to stay faithful to God? Why is it so hard for us to stay faithful towards God? Endurance. When reading the New Testament,  we watch as Jesus shows great endurance towards His disciples, towards the Pharisees, and towards the ill and demon-possessed. He endures in His teachings and His words never fail. Even to the point of death, Jesus stayed faithful to His Father. His disciples all fled, betrayed, or den...

 While reading the old testament like I am right now, I always find myself getting super frustrated with the Israelites. Anyone else? I always wonder what is going on in their heads. I mean you literally watched as God plagued Egypt, parted the red sea, destroyed the pharaoh's army, guide you by a pillar of fire by night and a cloud by day. You watched as water came from a rock and manna fell from the sky. Yet you STILL continue to live your life as if you were in captivity. Only this time captivated by false gods and old sins, things you were not so willing to give up so easily. Then I get even more frustrated as I get into the prophets. Did you know that the Israelites had about 16 different prophets that came to them in the span of about 100 years? What did all these prophets have in common? They were sent to WARN the Israelites to stop following the evil ways of the world, or God would give them over to it and they would be brought to ruin. The Israelites would repent, go back ...

Red flags are alerts that go off in our minds, telling us that what a person is saying, or doing is something we don’t believe is right. As Christians, this voice is the Holy Spirit.  Sometimes it is hard though to tell whether it is really the Holy Spirit telling us, or it is something else. The way to tell the difference is by asking yourself, is this something that would please God? And if the answer is yes then you know the red flag that is popping up should not be ignored. If it is no, then check within yourself as to why. Red flags should not be associated with anything but what the person is saying or doing. A red flag for anyone should hold no bias. If you find yourself bias in a situation, step back, and pray that God will allow you to see the situation through his eyes and not your own.  This will help ensure that you are still showing God's love. Because God does not show favoritism.  Sometimes a situation is not in need of a red flag but a yellow one. A yellow...