Controversial?

I've made it known very clearly in my blog that I believe the Bible and that it is the Word of God. Therefore, if the Bible states something, then I believe it and to me there is no controversy. Some things aren't as clear as others, but this one leaves no question in my mind when I read these verses. It is as clear as black and white. I'm not the one who said it -- I'm just a Bible believer and if God says it through his word, then that settles it, no questions asked. I am not even going to type out the verses - but please look them up yourself and leave a comment with your thoughts. I doubt if anyone will leave comments because of the nature of this subject. But I would really like to know your thoughts. You can do it anonymously if you don't want your name in there. The focus verses are Romans 1:26-28, but please read verses 18-32 to get the full meaning.

There is always hope in Christ. I am certainly not pointing my finger at anyone for their sin, I just wanted to bring to light something in the Bible that is not talked about very often in this world. We are all sinners and maybe we haven't committed that sin, but we each have our own faults and failures which makes us no better than people who've committed the sins mentioned in the Romans verses. But one of my favorite verses of hope for every kind of sinner is in 1 Corinthians 6 where it names all kinds of sins and says that these kinds of people cannot inherit the kingdom of God, but then leaves us with the hope that comes only through Jesus. Here are the verses -- I love it!

Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderes nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
1 Corinthians 6:9-11.

One Year!

Today is my one year anniversary since starting this blog! I can't believe a year has already passed. I have really slowed down on my posts the past couple of months and I'm not really sure why. I think one reason is because I've quit doing blogging from work and when I get home in the evenings I'm just not in the mood. But I will try to continue to post at least once or twice a week. I've met some wonderful people through blogging and that, I believe, has been the very best part of this adventure. I hope that one day I can meet some of you in person!

Something to Say

I guess the reason we blog is because we feel like we have something to say and this is a good way to say it. I recently got the new Matthew West CD which is called "Something to Say" and it included a bonus DVD about what he recently had to go through. I guess it was about a year ago that he was getting ready to record the new CD and he began having trouble with his voice. He ended up going to the doctor, then had to be on voice rest, and then had to go through surgery on his vocal cords. For a musician, a singer whose life revolves around singing with that being his means to support his family, this was a really scary thing. If you have a chance to get the CD and watch the DVD, it's really good and you go right through the process with Matthew. It all served to draw him closer to God and to help him realize that God is the one who is in control. Go here to hear a clip from the documentary and click on "Nothing to Say Documentary" on the right-hand side of his page. Thankfully, he is able to sing again and the CD is out now.

I was able to relate to Matthew West because I am a musician. I don't know what I would do if my ability to play the piano was taken away from me. My husband could relate to him because he felt called to teach, and when he went through his illness he lost his voice and didn't know how he would ever be able to teach. So, if you have something important to say, be sure to say it while you are able, whether it is through music, speaking, blogging, or any other way. Through His Word, God gives each Christian something to say and we need to take advantage of the talents and gifts He has given us to be able to tell the world about Him.

2Co 4:13 - Show Context
It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken." With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak...

1Th 2:4 - Show Context
On the contrary, we speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts.

What I've Been Doing

Last week I had the whole week off work for vacation. It was wonderful! We decided not to go on a trip since gas prices have gotten so high. Instead, we got new carpet in our bedroom. It's a huge room and was a major ordeal just to get prepared for the carpet. But now the room is nice and clean, and the carpet looks great. And my closet got cleaned out because it had to be carpeted also and I had to get everything out of the way.

Saturday I went to another family reunion, this time for my mother's side of the family. It was nice -- I saw relatives that I don't get to see often and I met some relatives for the first time. This week it's back to work which hasn't been so bad. The Alabama heat and humidity have come back full blast! I'm afraid my walking outside will soon be coming to an end. I'll have to start using the treadmill which I don't look forward to. I have good news about my walking experiment -- I have lost 10 pounds which was about the amount I was hoping to lose. I didn't have to change what I was eating -- I just had to be consistent with my daily walking. Now I'll need to continue it for the rest of my life if I want to stay at this weight. I actually now weigh what my drivers license says my weight is!

Friday Favorites

This is going to be about one of my favorite Bible verses and a personal testimony. When I was 15 years old, this verse helped to turn my life around. As a teenager, I was doing some things I knew a Christian person should not be doing. I won't go into detail about the things I was doing, but I always had this little nagging voice in my mind telling me that what I was doing was wrong. However, I wanted to do these things so I would try to find ways to justify doing it. I would tell myself that the Bible didn't specifically say not to do this particular thing. But then one summer I was at church youth camp and my pastor was speaking to us. He asked us if we knew a reason why we shouldn't do these kinds of things. And then he told us the reason why and he used this Bible verse to explain it. The verse was Colossians 3:17 -- And whatsoever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father by him. As soon as he read that verse, the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart and showed me that I could not do the things I was doing in the name of the Lord. At that moment I changed and I had a desire to stop sinning and to let Jesus be the Lord of my life. The Bible is powerful and can speak God's word to us when nothing else can.

Fruit

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control... Galations 5:22-23

If you are looking at two trees that are bearing fruit, an apple tree and an orange tree, can you tell just by looking at them which one is the apple tree and which is the orange tree? Of course you can, because you know what apples and oranges look like. The evidence that a tree is an apple tree is that the fruit growing there are apples. The evidence that a tree is an orange tree is that the fruit growing on it are oranges. In the same way, if you are a Christian, people should be able to look at your life and recognize that you are a believer because of the fruit your life bears -- love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Not too long ago, someone described me as a "happy person". Hopefully, what they thought was happiness, was actually the joy that can only come from being in Christ. Being happy is dependent on circumstances around us, but joy is something God-given and it doesn't go away when life throws us difficult situations. What kind of fruit does your life bear?

Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. Luke 6:44

...for out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks. Luke 6:45b

Divine Design

What a great week it's been having A Plea for Purging and Jake at my house! It used to bother me that I am not a neat freak about my house, and I wished that I cared more about having a perfectly clean house all the time. But no matter how much I wanted to be that way, it just isn't in my nature to get all upset when the house gets messy. And now I have come to realize that God had a purpose in creating me the way He made me. It was by divine design that things can be messy and it doesn't bother me. God already knew that I was going to be having a bunch of guys staying at my house from time to time, and if I had been a neat freak, I wouldn't have been able to handle the sleeping bags laying around the floor, the luggage sitting around, unmade beds, laptops and cell phones plugged in everywhere, and towels hanging around. What I always thought was a flaw in my personality, I now see as a gift from my Creator for the purpose of doing what He created me to do. It has been a blessing to me and my husband having these guys stay at our house.

Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality. Romans 12:13