Christianity means I hate Atheists and homosexuals? No

     One thing that bothers me a lot, is how most people have this idea that being a Christian means that I have a hatred for Atheists and think they are despicable people that don't deserve to live, along with gays and lesbians. In all honesty, that is basically the opposite of what I believe and what the whole Christian faith is about. I don't hate Atheists, nor do I hate homosexuals. Why should I when I know that I have sinned just as much as they have, and since all sins are equal to God's eyes, it isn't up to me to judge them. In fact, I have some friends that don't believe in God, and friends that are homosexual. At least for me it felt weird at first, being around these people, but I also know that God wants me to spread Christianity. For all I know, I could be one of the only people that talk about it to these people. Would it be nice if the found Jesus Christ? Of course it would be amazing! However, I respect that they have their own views, and I won't help by shoving my views down their throats. There's that saying that 'you can lead a horse to water, but can't make them drink'. If I were to try to force somebody to convert, then they might get this idea that I do hate atheists, and my friendship is just a way to get them to become Christian.   

     I also don't want them to feel like I think they are idiots, and only I know the right answer. While I believe and know that God is the only God there is, they might have legit reasons to not trust him. I heard a story about a person whose father jumped off a train and committed suicide for reasons unknown to anybody. He turned from God and turned to drugs and other bad things. If I were in his place I probably would have felt the same 'why would God do this to me?' type thought. However, just when this person was about to make a very bad decision, a person showed up at his house and started preaching to him. Out of all the houses, this person chose this man's house. God sent this person to his house because he knew what was happening, and through this person, the man turned back to God. 

     What I'm tying to say is that I do not know why a certain person doesn't believe in God. In the movie God's not Dead, the professor didn't believe in/ love God because of what happened to his mother. I can understand why people would feel betrayed at one of these moments, just like the Jews might have felt in the Holocaust, but I want to let them know that God still loves them, that he never left them. Who knows, maybe I could end up saving a life by talking about God and not being afraid when somebody smacks down my religion. 

     "Not because of who I am, but because of what you've done." - Who am I by Casting Crowns 

                                                     ~Anna~

Challenge

Sorry for the delayed update, I have been busy with the holidays and getting back to school. I want to wish a Happy New Year’s to everybody.  One of the presents I got for Christmas was a devotional. This is the first year I will be doing a devotional and I am excited to see where it leads me and how it changes and strengthens my relationship with God. I’ve gone through my fair share of times when I question whether or not God is there, and wonder how much he actually cares about me. One day I started listening to a Christian radio station and the songs on there just bring me so much more happiness and hope than any other radio station does. I love hearing the stories they share about people who have lost their way and turned to drugs and alcohol along with other things to help them ‘heal.’ However, these stories always end with them turning back to God. These are stories that I wake up to when my radio plays and they help start my day off right. I’m challenging myself to stick with my devotionals and to listen to Christian music whenever I have a chance. However, I know that it is also important to be quiet and spend time with God by listening to nothing and just listening to what He is trying to tell you. I want to start sharing my thoughts on the devotions with you next week, and will hopefully get another post in this week. I don’t want to sound too much like a teacher in my postings, because in all honesty I am just a teen and I am trying to grow in God just as you all are. I want to make this more of a place that people look too when they want help and so by sharing my thoughts on my devotions I hope to do just that.  

           "My heart will sing no other name Jesus Jesus"- Forever Reign by Hillsong 

                           ~Anna~

Christmas Time

Can you believe that on Thursday it will be Christmas? I feel like this whole year has flown by! There are so many things to prepare for, baking, shopping, wrapping, and of course just spending time with my family and loved ones. If you are like me and grew up in a church, you are familiar with the Christmas story. How Mary went with Joseph to Bethlehem, and gave birth to Jesus, our savior, in a barn. Obviously, we should keep this story in mind when going about our holiday activities, but that is really hard to do a lot, at least for me. We get caught up in making sure that all of the people are marked off our lists and cards are sent before the day arrives. Something that I find easier, though, is just spending time with my family. Eventually everybody is going to grow up and move out and these occasions might be the only times that you get to see all of your family together. You may not be in the mood to bake your mom’s famous chocolate chip pie, or play yet another game of cards with your family, but you should do it. You never know when life happens and you aren’t able to make it to a family gathering. I guess my message today is short and sweet, don’t just make Christmas about presents, but make it about Jesus and family as well. Merry Christmas!

- "Mary did you know, that your baby boy is Lord of all creation?"~ Mary Did You Know by Mark Lowry 

                      ~Ana~

Respecting ourselves and setting examples

As a teen, I realize that I do not have the experiences that the adults around me do. However, I am still affected by what goes on around me, and especially the things that revolve around the younger part of my generation. It makes me upset to see how many pre-teens think it is cool to post pictures that show way too much skin. These postings even bother me when someone my age is the owner. I think it is in no way attractive when I see pictures of guys wearing their pants too low and smoking a cigar, or doing drugs. In fact, I find it horribly disgusting! I also don’t like how girls now think it is only attractive if they show off all their cleavage, or if they go so many times to the tanning bed that they turn out orange. I’m not as upset about the pictures themselves, rather the message they send. So many pre-teens look up to teenagers, and by posting these pictures, we aren’t really setting a good example for them. While media from celebrities has an impact on what society defines as beauty, we somewhat have the same effect on the younger part of our generation. I remember when I was in 6^th grade and walked into the middle school for the first time. The eighth graders seemed so cool, and the seniors in high school were like celebrities. I can’t be the only one that looked up to them, and hoped to be like them someday. Doesn’t that mean, then, that others do the same? That when those 6^th graders see posts from 10^th, 11^th, 12^th graders on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter, they put it in an ever-expanding file in their mind? That when these tweens find themselves posting on the social websites, they might recall those files, and use them as examples? That’s why I think it is so important to remember who is going to see those tweets and pictures. Likewise, God says in 1^st Timothy 2:9 “I want women to show their beauty by dressing in appropriate clothes that are modest and respectable. Their beauty will be shown by what they do, not be their hair styles of the gold jewelry, pearls, or expensive clothes they wear.” I realize that most of us want to look nice; we want to wear the jewelry and makeup. However, we can do that without exposing all of our skin. Aren’t we supposed to respect our body? Isn't our body a temple of God? I can’t imagine that God finds all these pictures ‘cute’ like the girls that post them do. I respect my body, and I know that by being modest and not worrying so much about how short my shorts are, it will be easier for me to keep my eyes on God. 

                             -"Stand tall but above it all, fix my eyes on you" Fix my eyes by For King and Country 

                                         ~Anna~

Love

 Love seems to be something everybody searches for. We all want love from a significant other, most of us want to settle down someday and spend our lives with said significant other. There is only one love we need though and that is God’s. With his love, we are capable of doing anything. In order to emphasis this point, there are countless numbers of verses in the Bible that reference God’s love. I think the most popular one is John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” There have been infinite amount of discussions about this verse, but I think it is one that we should have more discussion about. GOD SACRIFICED HIS SON for us! We are all sinners, but God saw some sort of hope in us and loves us so much that he gave his own son to save us! Not only that, but he gave us the promise of eternal life. All we have to do is believe in him. His own son died so that we can get eternal life just by believing in him. This is further emphasized by the verse Romans 5:8 “Christ died for us while we were still sinners. This demonstrates God’s love for us.” I want love like any other person, but I know that God has a plan for me and I trust that he knows what is best for me. The Bible goes even further and in 1 John 4:8 it says “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.”  

In order to make this subject something I can better relate to, I want to discuss God’s part in a relationship. I think that in a relationship, God should definitely be present. Talking about God should not be a taboo subject for a couple. By including God in a relationship, I feel like an unspoken agreement is made based on what God would want. That is why I believe that sex should be saved until after marriage. Adultery is something God spoke out against, and in my eyes that includes saving sex until after marriage. Once I am united with my husband before the eyes of God, will I let myself shed my virgin status. Something that I have stood by and said many times is that I want to be able to proudly wear white on my wedding day. I feel like that a relationship should grow spiritually before it becomes physical. If a relationship is all about physical wants, then it more than likely won’t survive rough waters. Since I don’t believe that divorce is something that should be taken lightly, I want to make sure that my husband and I are on the same page and strong enough spiritually before introducing more intimate parts.

                        

                           -"And when the oceans rage, I don't have to be afraid, because I know that You love me. Your love never fails" Your Love Never Fails by Jesus Culture. 

                                    ~Anna~ 

Why I am a Christian

As I walked down the hallway of my hall at school I yawned and notice the lack of noise coming from the dorm rooms. Then I realized that it’s a Sunday and it was nine a.m. For many people Sunday is just another day to sleep in. For a few moments I yearn to crawl back in bed and sleep a little longer, but I have church this morning. I’ll be honest; sometimes I don’t look forward to church. On days like these, when I just want to sleep a little longer, I don’t cherish the idea of waking up early and putting effort into my clothes. I don’t look forward to the idea of sitting and listening for an hour or so to a sermon that may not be aimed towards me. However, while the sermons may not pertain to me, I know that later in life I will find them helpful.  The worship time is what seems to affect me greatly. My heart lifts with every song that I sing, and I can feel my relationship getting even stronger with God. When it is time for Sunday school, I find it helpful because it is a time when the message is pointed towards people my age. I also love the feeling I get at church of being surrounded by a family that loves in and worships God, the way I do. Today as I walked through the dorms I felt almost a twinge of jealousy go through me. I longed to sleep and I wondered what it would be like if I had not been raised in a Christian home. Perhaps I would say God’s name in vain and feel no remorse. Maybe saying Hell as a word other than the place opposite of Heaven wouldn’t faze me. Wouldn’t it be nice to not have those feelings? To not be bothered by others when they diss God and my beliefs? Immediately guilt washed through me and those thoughts fled my head. If I wasn’t raised with Christian values, and had never been introduced to Christ, I couldn’t be sure of where I would be. I am not saying that following a path that doesn’t belong to God ruins you. I do believe, however, that it is because of him that I do not drink, do not do drugs, and try to live with high morals. I am not perfect and sometimes I fail, by letting cuss words slip and making choices that may not benefit God as much as they would me. I try to maintain these morals though, and I believe that these morals have shaped me into who I am right now. Instead of being jealous of those students and everybody who is not a Christian, we should pray for those people. Pray that they would find God and feel the way I do when I worship him. Pray that when they are scared or worried, they would know that God is there for them, and he protects those who trust in him. It is Him who helps me when I need strength. When I am down at the bottom of the rut, it’s Him who is standing there, with an outstretched hand.  It’s because of Him that I am here today, and I worship Him for that. So if people ask why I am a Christian that is what I tell them. I tell them that it is so much more than a religion. It is a personal relationship that you share with God. For me knowing that there is somebody there for me every step of the way, someone who carries me when I am too weak to walk, is reassuring.  That is why I am a Christian, that is why I put my faith in God and worship him alone.

                        -"If his grace is an ocean, we're all sinking." How He Loves by David Crowder Band.
                                  ~Anna~