It's really fun to talk to friends about things you like. I get really excited when I talk to my friends about Pride and Prejudice, or Batman, or Harry Potter. However, not all of my friends have the same opinion about these things as I do. Some think Matthew Macfayden made a good Mr. Darcy (I really really REALLY don't). Some people think that Ironman is better than Batman (he isn't). Some don't even LIKE Harry Potter (I just try to ignore that). Usually, my friends and I argue about stuff like whether Snape is a good guy or not, or who would win in a fight between Aragorn or the Master Chief.

Philippians 4:8 gives us instructions on how to think: "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." Ephesians 5 tells us how to speak: "Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving." Now, does that necessarily have anything to do with comic books, movies, or tv shows? Well, yes and no. It doesn't say we're not allowed to enjoy these things, but it does limit them to things that fit these qualifications. Also, focusing on these things to the point where we argue with our christian brothers and sisters about them, is wrong. I am embarrassed to say that I have gotten mad at people because they've said one tv show I didn't like was better than a show I did like. Don't let Satan use these things to make you mad and fight, or even just "pretend" argue, because it will just cause problems in the long run.

~Sarah

Optimism

   Quite often, we are reminded of the half full/half empty glass. It's very easy to look at the world in a half empty kind of way. Things will always go wrong. Maybe your car broke down, your electricity went out, or you've already eaten the last of your favorite food, or maybe you have really expensive taste and your favorite food is shrimp or lobster and you only get it on special occasions. Whatever the case is, things don't always go our way. But we always have to be thankful for what we do have, and count our blessings.

     A while ago I did an article on Job and how even though he had lost everything he had, he still had faith in God, and he didn't blame him. We need to remember that even though we may have a problem, we need to remember that God is not to blame. And even if we do end up loosing everything, God will always be there, and it'll all be worth it in the end. So remember, when you're starting to feel like your glass is empty, ask God to fill it. Matthew 7:7 says, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you." If we need anything, God will provide.

   

Advice

     In my daily Bible reading, I have been reading in Proverbs, and in proverbs, you'll notice, was written so you won't forget a word of it. In just about every chapter there is at least one verse that was, or will be, mentioned in another chapter, but they're all phrased differently. Today, we'll be talking about Proverbs 15:32, which is talking about how we need to listen to others, and admit when we're wrong.

     In Proverbs 15:32, it says, "Whoever ignores instruction despises himself, but he who listens to reproof gains intelligence." This is saying that, if you don't listen to advice, and you become arrogant, and prideful, and don't try to understand what they're saying, then you're only hurting yourself. Now, not all advice is good advice, so you need to read the Bible so you can see what advice is good, and what advice is bad. Sometimes, I can be very stubborn, and don't want to listen to any advice at all. But I know that if I don't then I'm not going to help myself in any way by not listening, and it'll come back to haunt me in the future. This is one of the reasons why we need to choose our friends wisely, so we can receive good advise, instead of bad.

     In the second part of this verse, it says that he who listens to reproof gains intelligence. Now, I don't know about you, but I want to be smart, and one of the things that I've learned is that you can't learn anything from yourself, because you already know what you're about to say. Now, you can think about things and put two and two together, but you have to have two and two first in order to put them together. So next time someone who you can trust (make sure you can trust them first) gives you advice, take it, and apply it, because sometimes, it is so easy to be stubborn, that you don't want to listen, and you end up only hurting yourself.

Some Things Can't Be Made Modest

Today I am going to be talking about MODESTY! I was doing some shopping at Macy's yesterday when I came across some outfits that were incredibly immodest. I was standing there wondering, "How on EARTH could I make those modest?!" so I thought for a bit and realized that there was no way! There are some things that no matter what you do with them, the only thing they're good for is wearing under stuff. Like, say, this pair of "shorts" that hardly covers anything, and even so there are holes all over them so there's really no point in wearing them at all! There are some things that just can't be made modest. And with those things, no matter how cute or cheap, it's best to just walk away.

     But don't loose hope! Just because there are a lot of clothes that are immodest, that doesn't mean that they ALL are! Sometimes you have to dig around, but living in an immodest world doesn't give us the excuse to dress immodestly. Romans 12:2 says, "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." Do these "shorts" really look good acceptable and perfect? Not really. So next time you go shopping, remember that even though it may be difficult to find good modest clothes, that doesn't make it okay to wear them anyway.

Children

Jesus loves children. Look in Matthew 19:
When He was on earth, some children were brought to Him that He might lay hands on them and pray for them. The children may have been sick, and needed healing. They may even have just wanted to take their children to see the man about whom everyone was talking. No matter what they wanted, the parents brought their children. The apostles promptly tried to send the kids away. Before you throw stones at them, I'm pretty sure I would have done the same thing, too. Not only had Jesus just finished arguing with the Pharisees about divorce, but He had traveled a lot in the days before. Can you imagine how exhausted He was? His apostles probably saw that, and didn't want any loud, annoying, snotty, sticky children bothering their leader.

But Jesus told them, ""Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven." He didn't want them to send away the children, because He loves them, and the spirit they have. They have an innocent, trusting heart, a heart that most adults do not have. The world hardens hearts, but children haven't been hardened.

So, the next time a kid coughs on you, or gets sticky stuff all over your papers, or you have to wipe a kid's nose, just remember that Jesus loved them, and so should you.

-Sarah

Frog in a Water Pot

     Have you ever tried cooking a frog? I haven't, but it sounds kinda interesting. You see, in order to cook a frog you have to do it when it's alive (I don't know why, you just do). But the thing is is that frogs jump. I know what you're thinking, "Well DUH Jayla, frogs are supposed to jump!" well, if frogs jump then what do you think will happen when they touch the boiling hot water you're about to cook them in? They jump out of it right? But if you put it in a pot of cool water and slowly heat it up then they won't notice.

     Now for the explanation for the weird analogy. You see, Satan knows how to "cook our frogs" so to speak. He knows that if he just slowly tempts us into "minor" sins, then after a while we won't notice how far away we've gotten from God. Like, did you know that when television was first popular, even if two people were married on the show they still had separate beds on the show because they didn't want any impurities? Now it seems like if a show doesn't have two people sleeping together that aren't married at some point or another, it's just reruns of an old show. This is how you boil a frog. We need to be very careful so we don't let this happen to ourselves, because if we're not careful we'll end up getting cooked.

Who's Got The Blame?

     Bad things happen to us all the time. There is no escaping them. The good news is that good thing happens to us too. But when something bad happens to us, we have two options. We can either sulk and blame God for everything, or we can ask God for help and try to fix the problem. A lot of times I have heard people say that everyone at some point in their lives has asked God why He would put them trough something like that. But that's not true at all.

     One of my favorite books in the Bible is Job. It starts out with Job having everything. He had ten kids, 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, 500 female servants, and several servants. Not only did he have all of this, but he also feared God as you can see in verse one. But if you continue reading you can see that he looses everything all at once. His children, animals, and servants were all gone. But if you look in verse twenty-two it says, "In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong." So no matter what people tell you, not everyone has charged God with wrong. Nor should we. God will never give us anything we can't handle If you look in 1 Corinthians 10:13 it says, "No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it."

     So when things go wrong, we don't have to blame God. In fact we should do just the opposite and ask Him for help. We don't have to blame God for everything.
   

Bible Study and Study the Bible

Today is Wednesday, and most girls reading this will be going to Bible Study tonight. Having gone to Bible class for my whole life, I've noticed different types of people who attend Bible class, and from their actions and body language while the Bible is being taught, it's easy to tell how they view the Bible.

Obviously, there's one group who enjoys learning in class; they ask questions, turn to verses in their Bible, and take notes. This shows that they take it seriously, and enjoy God's Word.

Then there's the other group, that whispers (not so) quietly to each other, and giggles throughout the class, and simply pretends to pay attention. This shows a complete lack of respect for God's word.

Lastly, there's the group of people who simply slumps their shoulders and looks down at the table, obviously bored and wishing they were anywhere but at Bible Class. This shows a dislike, even a contempt for God's word, because they can't be bothered to care about the Scriptures.

To amplify the amount of information and application you get in class tonight, I have a few tips for you:

-BRING YOUR BIBLE. I can't tell you how many times kids come into Bible Class without their Bible. Even some adults I know don't bring their Bibles, simply relying on the pew Bibles. This is embarassing, and they really should be ashamed of themselves. Would you go to battle without a gun? Neither should you go to Bible Class without your Bible.
-Take notes. Write down a verse that caught your attention, or made you think, or just simply sounded good. When you get home, write it on your mirror in dry erase marker, and think about it all week.
- Ask questions. Seriously, teachers love this, and it lets them know you're paying attention and thinking about the topic at hand.
-Write in your Bible. Did your teacher make an interesting point about a verse that you'd never thought of before? Make a note of it beside the verse in your Bible. That way, whenever you read that verse, you'll always think of that point .

~Sarah