Pure in Our Own Minds

     Before, I have talked about keeping the minds of others pure by dressing modestly. Well today, I'll be talking about keeping our minds pure, which is just as important.

     In Philippians 4:8, it says, "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." This is saying that we should fill our mind with only good, and pure thoughts. This is one of the reasons you should be around only good things, because you will always think about what's around us. Now, we don't have to live in a bubble or anything, we are told to go out into the world, and teach people the truth, and to let our light shine, which is something that we can't do if there's no darkness to shine in. But we shouldn't let the things of the world influence our minds.

     Everyone knows that gossiping is wrong. But so is thinking mean things about others. How would you like it if you found put that someone thought badly of you? You probably wouldn't like it. This verse is saying that we should only think of good, and pure things. You should be the same person on the inside, as you are on the outside. Because, unlike us humans, God knows what we're thinking. God hears us, even if we don't say anything. So be careful what you think, because God is our eternal judge, and he sees if our hearts, and our minds are pure or not. Thank you for reading. :)

Kindness

To open today's article, let's look at Matthew 5:44-45 together.

"But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust."

You probably understand what the verse is saying, because it's a very simple concept. However, let's look at it deeply.

A way to interpret this verse is that God blesses and curses both good and bad people in due time. However, both sun and rain are blessings. Having lived in Texas my entire life, rain doesn't always come when it's needed. Last year there was a terrible drought, and we had to conserve water and even electricity at one point. Rain is a blessing, because it quenches the thirst of the earth and the animals that God made.

Now, just like the rain, we are supposed to be good to good and bad people. There's no glory gained if we're nice to those who are nice to us. That's so easy even bad guys do that (Matthew 5:46-47). Think of it this way: our kind acts are blue paint, and we only paint the objects that are all ready blue. What's the point in that? But, if we paint the black objects, or the brown objects, or even the red objects, then it makes a difference.

So, today, be nice to someone mean to you. To you, it might not be saying the words that your tongue is wishing to fling. If you show kindness to someone who is unkind, it might alter their life completely. Or, it might not. You never know. It's not your place to know. Jesus simply told us to be kind to those who are unkind to us.

And that includes our big or little brothers :)
~Sarah

::)

Picture Time!

PICTURE TIME.

Picture One: We got this dress for $13 at a thrift store. The cool thing about it is that it's from Banana Republic, so that was a great deal. The only thing is that it's a little big on me, and it's very low up top. I usually just wear a shirt under it and a sweater over it, but I decided to mix things up.

Picture Two: There are endless ways to make an outfit modest, just by using items you all ready own, and are hanging up in your closet. I put a nice t-shirt over the dress, and since the dress was a little big, I put a belt on so that way I had a defined waist.

Tip:
-Colors have to match
-Shirt has to be darker than the dress below it. It would defeat the point to put a white shirt over a neon orange dress.
-If the dress is bigger than the shirt, put a really snug undershirt on beneath the t-shirt, but over the dress, to reduce visible wrinkles and lines.

Influence

     Whether you like it or not, you are an influence to someone. There's always that cute little girl who wants to be just like you when they grow up, and always wants to give you a hug (which is just adorable). And then there are those other people who watch you too (especially if you're the preacher's kid). You need to show these people who you are, and who you represent. How are we supposed to let our light shine if we don't show others that you belong to God? I mean, no one is perfect, but we at least have to show others who we belong to in our daily lives.

     I love little kids. I mean, they're all so cute! Especially the ones I'm teaching in Bible class! And once, one of my students wanted to sit by me in church. And really, how could I say no to him? I mean, this little guy is quite adorable. So, as we're sitting there, my teacher instincts turned on, and I realized that I had to be a good influence on him, because I knew he looked up to me. And you know what, as soon as I pulled out my Bible, he started using his, and I started teaching him how to look up scriptures, and he was paying attention. But suppose that I didn't look up the scriptures in front of him (I usually do anyway, but sometimes I prefer to just listen, or take notes) and I started goofing around with my friend sitting on the other side of me? Do you think that he'd start paying attention to sermons and Bible class after that? Probably not. We need to let our light shine, and not just to little kids either. We also need to be influences to our friends. I have some very close friends, and I've noticed that, me being around them has influenced them, especially considering I'm older than most of them. And I have to be very careful around them, because it's so easy to forget, and become a bad influence.

     We can also apply this to how we dress. I have a friend who didn't have a very conservative dress code when I met her. Then one year, she went to Bible camp with me, and had to follow the dress code there. And now, she only ever follows that, because she saw that we should dress modestly. We need to have a good influence on others, even though it's hard, because whether we like it or not, we're still influencing them.

     Thank you for reading. :)

Why We Should Evangelize.

     I have heard a lot of people saying that there's almost no use in evangelizing, because people just aren't very interested in worshiping God anymore. There are so few people that actually care, then why should we even try, if we won't get anywhere? Well, today, I'll be talking about just that. I'll be talking about why we at least need to try.

     Yesterday, in my dad's sermon, he used an illustration of starfish on a beach. There was a little boy, who was on the beach, when he saw a bunch of starfish that had been washed up on the shore. The boy started picking up the starfish, and throwing them out, back into the ocean. He threw one after the other. After a while of this, a man went up to the boy and asked him why he even tried, because he couldn't make much of a difference anyway. The boy picked up a starfish, and said, "Well, it makes a difference to this one." and threw it out into the ocean.

     A lot of times, we start thinking that no matter how many people we convert, we're not going to make much of a difference anyway. But the thing is, sometimes we only count people by the tens, or maybe even hundreds, but we should have patience, and count people one at a time, and see that even though we're not making a difference in very many people's lives, it's still some. So no matter how hard it may be, at least talking to someone about the Bible is a good start. Just changing one life is still changing a life.

     Thank you for reading. :)

Assuming

                On Saturday night I babysat a couple of kids. They were really sweet, and it was a lot of fun. The little girl and I played Candyland together, which was fun because Candyland doesn’t require any talent, just luck. Well, the little girl thought that Queen Frostine was beautiful and she kept looking at the Queen Frostine card. “Oh, she’s wonderful!” she said (which was adorable, because she has a sweet little girl voice). As she and I were playing Candyland, I got to a point in the game where I was about to win. I was near the finish line when she told me, “Here! I want to pick out a card for you!” I don’t know if you’ve noticed this, but little kids are cheaters. They cheat unabashedly, even when you call them out on it. When the little girl told me that she was going to pick out a card for me, I knew that it would send me back so she could win, so I groaned when she handed me the Queen Frostine card. And then she asked me why I was sad, because Queen Frostine was pretty. I then realized that she had given me that card, not because she wanted me to lose, but because Queen Frostine was her favorite.

                This leads me to the point I’m trying to make. Do not assume. Don’t assume that someone is trying to be mean, don’t assume that someone is trying to embarrass you. People just don’t think about what they say sometimes. We’re not responsible for what others say, only for how we react and speak back to them. The next time someone says something that makes you angry, try and see if they were actually being mean, or if they just misspoke. It will make your life easier.

A Lesson on Happiness

The other day, I was reading in Proverbs 15, and I came across verse 15, which said, "All the days of the afflicted are evil, but the cheerful of heart has a continual feast." At first, I thought, "Well, duh." and then I realized what it meant.

There are two kinds of people. Those who are happy, and those who aren't. Everyone has a bad life. There is no perfect life, only those who choose to be content with the one they have. If you spend your whole life dwelling on your problems, then you're not going to be a very happy person. But if you choose to accept the fact that your life could be worse, and you are thankful for what you have, then life will be a whole lot easier. I know some people who have everything they could ever need, or want. They have a pretty decent life, but they choose to dwell on those things that keep their life from being perfect, and are very unhappy people. Then there are others, who don't have the best lives, but you'd never know it because they are always happy.

So, let's look at this verse again, "All the days of the afflicted are evil, but the cheerful of heart has a continual feast." It's a very true verse. If you choose to be happy, and content, then you will have a continual feast. But if you let the bad things get to you, you won't live the best life.

Thank you for reading. :)

Forgiveness: Should We Forgive Others Even If They Don't Ask it of Us?

     All the time, you'll hear people saying that we should forgive others, even if they don't ask us to. But should we? Are these man's views, or God's? Today, I am going to be talking about this great question that is on a lot of people's minds.

     Well, in Matthew 6:15, it says "but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." And, I know I use this one a lot, but in John 3:3,5 it talks about how, unless we're born again, we won't even see Heaven, and in Acts 2:38, it says that Baptism is forgiveness of sins. So what does this have to do with the topic of this article? Well, this shows us that, if we aren't baptized, then we aren't forgiven. Unless we ask forgiveness for our sins, we don't receive it. So if God doesn't even forgive others unless they ask of it, then we shouldn't either. Even though we are to forgive others, we don't need to forgive them if they don't ask for it. We don't have to hate them, by no means should we hate them, but that doesn't mean that we should forgive them necessarily.

     Yes, I know this was a very short article, but I felt that it was a very important subject to cover anyway. So thank you for reading, and please keep this in mind. :)

Age Is Just a Number

     I want to talk to you about something that I don’t think gets talked about very often, which is a shame. Older women are supposed to teach the younger women (Titus 2:3-5). In the church, I don’t see this as often as I should. The older women don’t have very strong relationships with the teenagers or even the little girls, and so the age groups in a congregation are divided, and there’s no intermingling. This is wrong. 


     When you were little, didn’t it make you feel nice when a girl older than you hugged you or said something nice to you? Doesn’t it still make you happy to be praised or complimented by someone you admire? Imagine the impact you could have on even just one little girl in your congregation just by asking them to sit with you on Sunday mornings, or giving them a little gift. Even if you just said, “Hi! How are you? I like your dress!” you would make their day. Little girls want to be noticed by the big girls. 


     We need to get over the age divide in the church, and reach out and be friends with everyone, no matter if they’re your age or not. Some of my dearest friends are in their sixties, or they’re still in pre-school. Everybody has something interesting and unique about them that they can offer to the church, but if no one is including them in, their talents are going to waste.
So, since tonight is Wednesday, if you’re a christian you’re probably going to Bible Class tonight. I’m challenging you to make one little girl’s night awesome by starting to forge a relationship with her. If you’re friends with her, then when she needs help later on, she’ll come to you, because she knows she can trust you. And believe me, it’s a lot of fun. Little kids are awesome.
~Sarah

Photo of the Week

Picture One:
This is a tricky dress to make modest, because, to be honest, it looks like an apron. It's not even much of a dress, really. It's more like a top. It comes four inches above my knee, it doesn't cover very much up top, and it's a halter top, so I have a knot on the back of my neck, which looks like it's going to untie any minute. However, the ruffle on the neckline are cute, and the pattern is condusive for winter, so let's look at how I would go about modestifying this.

Picture Two:
What I did here was I put the dress on over a black skirt and a black shirt. The dark colors underneath not only match the dress, but it also makes it stand out, and become the focal point of the outfit. Also, if the skirt is too much longer than the dress, it's all right to roll the skirt underneath up a little bit. It'll make it look more layered.

Helpful Hints:
-Putting jeans under a dress or skirt does make it modest. However, it does dress down the article of clothing considerably. Keep that in mind.
-If the dress or skirt is way too short, putting a long skirt underneath it will look kind of silly. Try using a medium length skirt in between the short and long skirts, to make it balance.
-MAKE SURE THE SEASONS MATCH! Don't wear a winter skirt with a spring skirt. It'll look odd.

~Sarah

Laziness

     Proverbs 6:6-10, "Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest. How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest," Now, this doesn't mean that we have to do nothing but work all the time, because then we'll get burned out, which is never a good thing. But we have to make sure that we're not lazy.

     Living in a world of computers, and Apple products, you pretty much just have to sit there, and do nothing all day. You can do something, by doing nothing! Like, this blog for instance. In order to teach young women from all around the world, all I have to do is get on, and start typing! It's that easy! I don't have to go through much preparation, and even that I do on my iPod touch! In fact, the other day, I did an entire brainstorming session in about five minutes. I'm not saying that it's wrong to have these things, but we still have to be careful in how we spend our time. I have a very difficult time with it sometimes. But we are called to be workers for God. How are we to go out and make disciples (Matthew 28:19)  if we're lazy? I was reading Little Women a few weeks ago, and they did an experiment. The four girls decided to spend a week of their summer doing absolutely nothing but what they enjoyed, to see if they liked it. They enjoyed it for a little while, but then everything started getting chaotic, and by the end of the week, they were very glad it was over.

     Everyone has to have their rest, but we have to be like the ants. We have to keep busy with God's work. A lot of times, it's easy to let other people do, but it doesn't say to let everyone else do the work in Matthew 28:19. It's talking to all Christians. I know this was a short article, but please keep it in mind, and thank you for reading. :)

     

When Others Are Immodest

 We've talked about the importance of modesty, and we've talked about how to be modest. We haven't yet talked about what to do when someone else is immodest, and that's what we're going to do today. You've probably seen lots of immodest girls in your life. Sadly, we've grown used to short shorts, tight dresses, and low shirts in today's society. They're everywhere, even in the winter (depending on where you live. I live in Texas, so this is a problem due to our warm weather). We've all run across people who dress immodestly, even if it's on accident. How do we approach them about this?

First, you have to be dressed modestly. You can't tell someone that what they're wearing is wrong if you're dressed the same way. That doesn't make any sense at all.

Second, you have to be gentle about it. Most of the time, immodesty stems from a lack of education. The girl probably genuinely does not know it's wrong, usually because her parents haven't taught her about modesty. Making her feel guilty or ashamed is not effective. If she's not a Christian, that could drive her away from Christ. If she is a Christian, she deserves to know the information to help her be a better Christian. In no way should you use harsh words.

Third, offer an alternative, or a solution. Usually, it's not helpful to just tell someone that they're in error, and leave them on their own. Be prepared to help her out. Offer her your sweater if her shirt's too low, or ask if she wants to borrow something of yours. Depending on the situation, you might be able to help or not.

Finally, make sure you have the authority. What do I mean by that? In Titus 2, we're told that older women are supposed to teach the younger women. If you're thirteen years old, do you have the right to tell a thirty-five year old that she's dressed immodestly? No, not really. If you're fifteen., do you have the right to tell a twelve year old that her clothes are too revealing? Yes, you do.

Again, just be careful about how you do it. Tell the truth in love.

~Sarah  

"Count Your Blessings"

     It's November. The month that holds Thanksgiving. A lot of times, it's easy to get discouraged, or impatient. It's easy to think that we have nothing to be thankful for, especially when things aren't going our way. But the best thing you could possibly do, is count your blessings. But, take my advise, and never count them before you go to bed, because you'll never sleep. Ever.

     Sometimes, we get so wrapped up in our own lives, that we forget to count our blessings, even though we have plenty to be thankful for. Usually, when I get started on the list, it's hard to think of things at first, but the more I go, the more I realize how blessed I am. Colossians 3:15, "And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful."

     Once you realize how blessed you are, you'll be very happy usually. It's also a way to keep us content. Hebrews 13:5, "Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you.'" You have no idea what you have, until you're thankful for it. Here are some things you can be thankful for:

1.) A Bible! God blessed us by giving us His word, so we can know and understand what he wants of us so that we can make it into Heaven!
2.) A Heavenly Father. What is better than being a child of God?
3.) A Savior, who has opened up a way to get us into heaven, by sacrificing Himself for us. That's definitely something to be thankful about! 
4.) A bed to sleep in at night- I know this is something simple, but there are some people who don't have this privilege.
5.) A house, which not everyone has.

These are just some of the things that we can be thankful for. So go ahead, please, I encourage you to take a piece of paper and a pen, and try writing down all f your blessings. Thank you for reading. :)

Love One Another

    1 Corinthians 13:4-8 "Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away." Matthew 22:39, "And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself." John 13:34-35, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."

     All throughout the Bible, we hear about love, how we should love each other, and how God loves those who loves others as you see in Matthew 25. As a human being, it is very difficult to love some people. Sometimes, I'll be talking to someone and think, "Wow, you are one of the most lovable people in the universe!"  But, in Matthew 25:40 says, "And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'" This is saying that we have to love even the most difficult people, not just the easiest. Luke 6:32-37, "If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful."

     We have to do what is one of the hardest things about being a Christian; we have to love everyone. There are some people who, every time I talk to them, it seems like the only joy they find is life is making me want to hurt them. These are the kind of people that Jesus was talking about. And we need to love them as well. It may be difficult, but if getting to Heaven was easy, then what would be the point of it? Most of the time, the hard thing to do is the right thing to do.

Acting Like a Lady

 Girls are different than boys. I know that, you know that, the whole world knows that. Even little kids who have trouble counting to ten know that.

God made girls to be different from boys. He made us to not only look and think differently, but to act differently.

There are two ways we as girls can act nowadays: God’s way or society’s way. Quite often girls act the way society dictates. What society tells girls nowadays is that guys are not as smart as girls (for instance, commercials. Have you seen many commercials where the husband is right and the wife is wrong? I haven’t). It tells us that girls don’t need guys; girls need jobs, so they can be independent and take care of themselves. It tells us to speak everything that’s on our mind, and to stand up to everyone who tries to walk all over you.

But alongside the independent woman ideal they push, they also objectify women at the same time. Singers and actresses are put in skimpy clothes and paid millions of dollars to sing and dance provocatively. Television shows and movies tell girls that all they need to be happy is a boyfriend. It’s very contradicting, and confusing, isn’t it? How can you be independent at the same time you’re chasing boys? How can you say you don’t need anyone when you’re dressing to attract male attention?

God’s women are different, however. God’s women are gentle (I Peter 3:4), modest (I Peter 3:3-4; I Timothy 2:9), submissive (Ephesians 5:22-24; Ephesians 6:1). They take care of their families (Proverbs 31; Titus 2:5) and are quiet (I Timothy 2:12). It’s quite different, isn’t it?

Now, if you’re a teenager, then you’re probably not married right now. Though you don’t have a husband to submit to, you do have a father. And if you don’t have a strong, Christian father, then you do have a Heavenly Father. We should always obey our fathers. Until the moment you say “I do” your father has authority over you, and he will lead you and guide you to make the right decisions in life.

Before I end this, I just want to say that society’s woman is not stronger than a Godly woman. For example, which is harder: controlling your tongue or lashing out at someone who annoys you? Controlling your tongue, by far! It takes great strength of mind and heart to not say the words itching to get out of your mouth. Which is harder: obeying your parents or disobeying and doing what you want? Obeying is. It takes a much stronger person to control herself, don’t you think?

Here are some ways you can act more ladylike… God’s way:

• Don’t yell. Yelling brings a lot of attention to yourself, which is immodest, and most of the time it’s rude, because it disrupts people around you. Speak softly (but don’t mumble! People want to hear what you’re saying!)
• Practice walking gracefully. Though I frequently fall over and trip, I do try to walk elegantly.
• Grow your hair out long. This is just a suggestion. I’m not saying this is mandatory, but it does help you feel pretty, and you can do girly things with it. Plus, the Bible says it’s an honor to have long hair (I Corinthians 11:15).

• Embrace feminine activities. Learn how to do something that will benefit other people, like sewing baby clothes, crocheting blankets for other people, or baking cookies. It’s a great way to do good works!
• Embrace feminine clothing. It’s all right for a girl to wear skirts, or dresses, or pink hair bows! Looking girly isn’t stupid or weird if you’re a girl. Don’t be afraid to dress up every now and then (just remember I Peter 3:3-4!)
• Read. There are so many books with strong, feminine characters that behave themselves and act like true women. Besides the Bible (read about Esther, for sure!), I recommend Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen, for starters. See if you can identify a godly woman from a societal woman. Besides, reading is just fun, if you read the right books!
• Let boys get the door for you. This is really easy and it helps boys step up to act like men. They will act like gentlemen if you will act like a lady.

This is not exhaustive, but it’ll give you somewhere to start. Don’t forget to pray without ceasing and study!

~Sarah