Health Benefits to Coffee

If everyone drank a cup of coffee every morning there would be no more need for laxatives or anti-depressant pills yay! And probably no more need for sleeping pills too, because coffee makes you clean more than you may have otherwise, and then you sleep much better yay! :) Coffee and Jesus is the solution to all problems lol. Except for tooth health, but the trick there is to brush your teeth right after the coffee. :) May God bless you all!

Confessing Sins and Needing Prayer

"Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed." James 5:16

I would like to be healed so I thought I would confess two things here.  It is a bit easier to do this kind of confession then to people I talk to all the time. 

Two things that I will try my best to not do for a week or longer is self pleasure, for those who are older you know what that is, and looking at things to buy on Amazon.  I actually consider both to be equally bad, one is lust and one is greed.  I suppose then that this blog might appeal to men and women, because usually men struggle with self-pleasure and women struggle with greed and shopping. 

I wasn't sure about writing about those on here but I felt God said it could be powerful.  I know lots of people struggle with self-pleasure but never talk about it, because it seems to shameful to talk about.  I don't look at things like some people do, but I still feel that it is wrong.

When I shared with a friend about it and if she thought it was a sin if I just thought about my husband she said, "Well I think it can open a door to Satan to attack you."  Which is very true. 

I suppose I struggle with these two things because they were the sins of my parents.  My dad was a sex addict.  He molested me when I was a little kid for a long time.  I don't have too many memories of that, but he is now in prison for molesting other kids.  I praise God for that, not out of revenge, but so he can't molest other kids for a time.  Please pray for the restoration of his mind though.  His psych evaluation was that he was "highly intelligent but with a skewed sense of reality."  That skewed sense was he literally thought it was a dad's job to teach his daughter about everything, including sexuality.  Quite strange for sure.  The strangest thing was that on the outside he looked like a stellar Christian, which I still have a hard time wrapping my mind around.  He would be in that group I guess where people say Lord to Jesus in heaven and he says I never knew you.  Unless he really and truly gets saved, which I know is still possible and I do hope for that.  May God save you father, wherever you are, and wash your mind until it is as white a snow.  Amen. :) 

And then my mom has always struggled with shopping.  She has always had countless bags that she needed to return from shopping, kind of a binge and purge cycle that she had for a long time.  So now I struggle with spending more than I should when under more stress. 

We all have our copping mechanisms, and those have always been my two.  My healthy two coping mechanisms though are writing like this and riding my bike or walking.  So hopefully I can do more of those from now on and not slip.

The ironic thing about both is that God seems to have chastened me as a warning maybe to stop both.  I am developing painful arthritis in my fingers, from holding my phone looking at Amazon so much and the other thing.  But the Lord disciplines those he loves so that we will repent and turn the other way, and I know that's what he is doing with me. 

I also feel more of a need to write more because who knows how bad how soon the arthritis will get and I won't be able to type.  But pray for a miracle on that for me please and I will too. 

May God bless you all! 

On Prayer and God

"Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven." Mt. 5:16

I had a great day yesterday!  I ate a salad for lunch, which is a rare thing for me, read three chapters in the Bible, went for three walks and then prayed 4 hours last night.  Of course the praying for 4 hours was only because I couldn't sleep.  :)

I used to hear of people praying 4 hours and thought that would be so hard, but when we are connected to the vine of Jesus things like that just come naturally, just like a tree naturally growing fruit.  It doesn't strain to produce fruit, it just does, if it gets enough water and sunlight.  Praying a long time is as natural as if you were to call your mom or best friend and talk for 4 hours. 

I had this vision or image while I was praying of the world, like you might see in a movie, and then God sees a chat window come up over a state and maybe he says, "Woohoo a live one!  Someone wants to chat with me at 3am!"  lol

We always think of God as being austere and anti-social, but he must have wanted a ton of people to talk to him since he created billions of people.  And if there are other planets then trillions and trillions of people.  So he must really enjoy talking to us and want to talk to us. :)

Although I realized last night, I suppose most of the world never talks to God.  Very sad.  Either because they don't have time or they are talking to the wrong God. :(

But I think God gets excited when we talk to him.  He is our father and we are his children.  I love it when my two girls are awake and I can hang out with them, and when they are sleeping I am sad and miss them.  Maybe it's the same with God.  Maybe when we don't talk to him much he is sad.  We are made in his image, so things that we feel maybe God feels. 

So go talk to God.  When you can't sleep or anytime.  Tell him all about your day and things you are worried about etc.  Ask him for things. 

"If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!" Mt. 7:11

May God bless you all!

On Loosing Faith vs. A Fear of God

I can't believe it's been almost a month since I've written a blog.  Sorry to any of you who enjoy reading what I write. :) 

I am working on reading all the red letters of the Bible, the things Jesus said.  I actually have never done that before, just read through all the words of Jesus.  I am noticing some things that I thought I would write about.

There are some seeming contradictions in the Bible.  I have looked into this before with the once saved always saved notion vs. can salvation be lost.  There is Ephesians 1:13 that says "you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise."  It would be good though to know what the original
Greek word was and if "sealed" is the best word for that. 

But then you have phrases Paul uses of some people in the early church "making shipwreck of the faith" or being "fallen from grace" or some "wandered from faith" due to a love of money.  Those all seem to say someone can walk away from the faith and so loose their salvation.  And now reading in Matthew 5:13 Jesus said, "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot."  How can we as Christians loose our saltiness?  Does that mean becoming unsaved because maybe we become lukewarm because maybe we start to love money more than God?  Then 1 Tim. 6:10 could come true still today, "Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs."

So does being sealed by the Holy Spirit contradict that some can wander from the faith?  Not if the issue is, was the person ever saved to begin with.  As Jesus said, "Many will say to me on that day Lord....But I will reply 'turn away from me for I Never knew you."  So many will think and now think they were/are in the faith but truly were/are not. 

The key is that If we remain faithful to God then we can know we are in the faith and if we do not we never were?  That is a mystery somewhat about the Bible and faith.  The point of those verses though is to remind us to not get too arrogant and lazy.  Romans 11:19-21 says, "You will say then, 'Branches were broken off so that I could be grafted in.' ²⁰ Granted. But they were broken off because of unbelief, and you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but tremble. ²¹ For if God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either."  Does that mean that if we loose our faith God will cut us off?  I think so.  Is that meant to strike fear into us?  Well Paul does say "tremble" and there is the verse, "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom."  Some fear is healthy because it keeps us from doing things like running in front of cars and therefore dying.  The same could be said for our faith, a FEAR OF SIN is probably very important so that we won't make shipwreck of our faith.  THE PROBLEM IN THE CHURCH TODAY IS THAT WE HAVE A SERIOUS LACK OF FEAR REGARDING SIN.  If we do not fear sin we won't think too much about committing sin.  But what did Jesus say?  Mt. 5: 28-30, "If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. ³⁰ And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell."  Does this also apply to the Christian?  It would seem so.  We don't want to get into extreme legalism, but we do need to have this much of a fear of sin.  If salt looses it's saltiness?  Then what?  It will be trampled on, which is a nice way of Jesus referring to hell, unfortunately. 

In college reading the Bible a lot I noticed all the "If's" in the Bible.  There are verses like, If you continue in faith you will be saved.  But what if we don't?  The story of the prodigal son I think represents a Christian who walks away from the faith and goes back into the world, fulfilling the lusts of the eyes and flesh.  What if that person dies when they were away from the faith?  Would they go to heaven or hell?  Most likely hell.  It is a harsh reality but it is good to tell ourselves the truth on this or we will get too comfortable.  We will think we can get away with murder as a Christians but what did Paul say, "God will not be mocked, a man reaps what he sows."  "If we sow to the flesh we WILL reap destruction."  Even as a Christian?  Yes, even as a Christian.

How can we loose our faith or reap destruction?  One example is what Paul says, when we start to love money more than God, when we put our faith in money more than God.  That is why Jesus said, "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter heaven."  Why?  Because the more rich we are, the more our focus can be on money; what to do with it, how to spend it etc. and not on God.  But our thoughts and focus should always be on God.  I am not very good with this myself.  Lately my focus has been too much on money and things I want to buy and that might be why I have been writing less.  Pray for me on that please. :)  Thank you :)

So the take away on all this is don't worry too much to the point of depression, but don't get lazy in your faith either and how you view sin.  Sin is serious.  We need to not sin as much as possible and it is important to have a fear of sin and it's consequences.  Children fearing their parent's anger causes them to do the right thing.  It is the same with God.  If we have a healthy fear of God's anger and his hatred for sin, we will live better lives and so ensure our salvation.  When we loose that fear, that is when we are in trouble. "The fear of the Lord (and what God says about sin) is the beginning of wisdom."  Be wise, maintain a healthy fear/respect for God and a hatred for sin.  

May God bless you all! :)

Learning From Others' Mistakes

The weather is so so cold today, so I'm watching two great movies again! The last few weeks I've been riding my bike and going for two walks every day with the girls.  I did so much cause I knew the time of great weather would be short.  But now it's cold again.  So it's time to relax more. :)

Both movies have a main actor that had a tragic flaw, so to speak.  In "The Pursuit of Happyness" the character got too greedy with a desire to make it big and get rick I think and so lost his wife.  He probably should have gotten a job at Walmart so they wouldn't have been homeless for a time. But in the end it worked out for them.  So that's good. 

And then one of my top 5 favorite movies, "28 Days" with Sandra Bullock.  Her flaw is that she copes with stress with excessive alcohol. :( It's a geat movie!  Check it out if you haven't seen it. I've seen it about 12 times and pledged long ago that I would learn from her mistakes in the movie. 

I could have gone that route, of loving a substance too much to cope with the pain of life, but praise God, God made me wiser.  And I lean on God in hard times rather than a substance. :)  And thanks to movies like these too I learned what not to do.  :)

May God bless you all!

The World

The World

I was thinking how I want to get more kid movies but just about every one has some scary parts. I was thinking I don't want my little girls to see scary things in movies. Ferngully is one of my favorite cartoon movies from when I was a kid but there is the scary gas monster. I think maybe the reason for that is the movie writers are trying to get kids ready for how the world is. There are scary, evil parts in kid movies because there are scary, evil parts about the world. Or the movies are just a reflection of what is.

We all have to fight a battle in some way. We all have to deal with Satan in some way. Evil is a part of everyone's life. Whether it's just dealing with your own bad temper or someone else's, or abuse from other people.

I wish I could always shelter my little girls from the scary and evil parts of the world but I suppose that would be impossible. I wish I could make it so they never get hurt but that is impossible. Just about every day both of them fall at some point and get hurt. But that's life. I love the quote I heard in a movie, "Life is pain and anyone who says any different is selling something." And that is quite true.

That's why my brother has chosen to not have more kids because he said, "Why would I want to bring more kids into this crazy world." And yes he has a good point. We are in a crazy world.

So what do we do with that?

I love the movie "Pay It Forward." The teacher says to his students on the first day of class:

Mr. Simonet: What if on that day you're free, you haven't prepared, you're not ready, and then, you look around you, and you don't like what the world is? What if the world is just a big disappointment?

Boy: We're screwed.

Mr. Simonet: Unless . . . unless you take the things that you don't like about this world, and you flip them upside down right on their ass. Don't tell you parents I used that word. And you can start that today. "Think of an idea to change our world - and put it into ACTION.

And that's what I try to do with my Jesus packets; that have muffins, candy and a Bible tract. Maybe those can make this world a little bit better place for my daughters when they grow up. I firmly believe that anyone who puts their faith in Jesus and tries to please God with their life WILL end up living better and treating others better, and that can make the world a better place. :)

And we just elected a Republican president in the US, praise God! I like to think maybe, just maybe, my packets had something to do with that lol. I have dropped off about 3,000 packets so far all over Texas and other states, so who knows, maybe that made a difference and made our country more Republican. :) 

May God help you  come up with your own idea of how to make the world a better place, or make packets with Bible tracts like I do lol.  You can make a difference!  All it takes is one person to start a movement!  And watch the movie "Pay it Forward." :)  God bless!

On Trying to Change the World

The World

I was thinking how I want to get more kid movies but just about every one has some scary parts. I was thinking I don't want my little girls to see scary things in movies. Ferngully is one of my favorite cartoon movies from when I was a kid but there is the scary gas monster. I think maybe the reason for that is the movie writers are trying to get kids ready for how the world is. There are scary, evil parts in kid movies because there are scary, evil parts about the world. Or the movies are just a reflection of what is.

We all have to fight a battle in some way. We all have to deal with Satan in some way. Evil is a part of everyone's life. Whether it's just dealing with your own bad temper or someone else's, or abuse from other people.

I wish I could always shelter my little girls from the scary and evil parts of the world but I suppose that would be impossible. I wish I could make it so they never get hurt but that is impossible. Just about every day both of them fall at some point and get hurt. But that's life. I love the quote I heard in a movie, "Life is pain and anyone who says any different is selling something." And that is quite true.

That's why my brother has chosen to not have more kids because he said, "Why would I want to bring more kids into this crazy world." And yes he has a good point. We are in a crazy world.

So what do we do with that?

I love the movie "Pay It Forward." The teacher says to his students on the first day of class:

Mr. Simonet: What if on that day you're free, you haven't prepared, you're not ready, and then, you look around you, and you don't like what the world is? What if the world is just a big disappointment?

Boy: We're screwed.

Mr. Simonet: Unless . . . unless you take the things that you don't like about this world, and you flip them upside down right on their ass. Don't tell you parents I used that word. And you can start that today. "Think of an idea to change our world - and put it into ACTION.

And that's what I try to do with my Jesus packets; that have muffins, candy and a Bible tract. Maybe those can make this world a little bit better place for my daughters when they grow up. I firmly believe that anyone who puts their faith in Jesus and tries to please God with their life WILL end up living better and treating others better, and that can make the world a better place. :)

And we just elected a Republican president in the US, praise God! I like to think maybe, just maybe, my packets had something to do with that lol. I have dropped off about 3,000 packets so far all over Texas and other states, so who knows, maybe that made a difference and made our country more Republican. :) 

May God help you  come up with your own idea of how to make the world a better place, or make packets with Bible tracts like I do lol.  You can make a difference!  All it takes is one person to start a movement!  And watch the movie "Pay it Forward." :)  God bless!

The World

I was thinking how I want to get more kid movies but just about every one has some scary parts.  I was thinking I don't want my little girls to see scary things in movies.  Ferngully is one of my favorite cartoon movies from when I was a kid but there is the scary gas monster guy.  I think maybe the reason for that is the movie writers are trying to get kids ready for how the world is.  There are scary, evil parts in kid movies because there are scary, evil parts about the world.  Or the movies are just a reflection of what is. 

We all have to fight a battle in some way.  We all have to deal with Satan in some way.  Evil is a part of everyone's life.  Whether it's just dealing with your own bad temper or someone else's, or abuse from other people. 

I wish I could always shelter my little girls from the scary and evil parts of the world but I suppose that would be impossible.  I wish I could make it so they never get hurt but that is impossible.  Just about every day both of them fall at some point and get hurt.  But that's life.  I love the quote I heard in a movie, "Life is pain and anyone who says any different is selling something."  And that is quite true. 

That's why my brother has chosen to not have more kids because he said, "Why would I want to bring more kids into this crazy world."  And yes he has a good point.  We are in a crazy world. 

So what do we do with that?

I love the movie "Pay It Forward."  The teacher says to his students on the first day of class:

Mr. Simonet: What if on that day you're free, you haven't prepared, you're not ready, and then, you look around you, and you don't like what the world is? What if the world is just a big disappointment?

Boy: We're screwed.

Mr. Simonet: Unless . . . unless you take the things that you don't like about this world, and you flip them upside down right on their ass. Don't tell you parents I used that word. And you can start that today.  "Think of an idea to change our world - and put it into ACTION.

And that's what I try to do with my Jesus packets; that have muffins, candy and a Bible tract.  Maybe those can make this world a little bit of a better place for my daughters when they grow up.  I firmly believe that anyone who puts their faith in Jesus and tries to please God with their life WILL end up living better and treating others better, and that can make the world a better place. :) 

And we just elected a Republican president in the US, praise God!  I like to think maybe, just maybe, my packets had something to do with that lol.  I have dropped off about 3,000 packets so far all over Texas, so who knows.  Maybe you can come up with your own idea of how to make the world a better place, or make packets with Bible tracts like I do lol.  God bless!

The World

I was thinking how I want to get more kid movies but just about every one has some scary parts.  I was thinking I don't want my little girls to see scary things in movies.  Ferngully is one of my favorite cartoon movies from when I was a kid but there is the scary gas monster guy.  I think maybe the reason for that is the movie writers are trying to get kids ready for how the world is.  There are scary, evil parts in kid movies because there are scary, evil parts about the world.  Or the movies are just a reflection of what is. 

We all have to fight a battle in some way.  We all have to deal with Satan in some way.  Evil is a part of everyone's life.  Whether it's just dealing with your own bad temper or someone else's, or abuse from other people. 

I wish I could always shelter my little girls from the scary and evil parts of the world but I suppose that would be impossible.  I wish I could make it so they never get hurt but that is impossible.  Just about every day both of them fall at some point and get hurt.  But that's life.  I love the quote I heard in a movie, "Life is pain and anyone who says any different is selling something."  And that is quite true. 

That's why my brother has chosen to not have more kids because he said, "Why would I want to bring more kids into this crazy world."  And yes he has a good point.  We are in a crazy world. 

So what do we do with that?

I love the movie "Pay It Forward."  The teacher says to his students on the first day of class:

Mr. Simonet: What if on that day you're free, you haven't prepared, you're not ready, and then, you look around you, and you don't like what the world is? What if the world is just a big disappointment?

Boy: We're screwed.

Mr. Simonet: Unless . . . unless you take the things that you don't like about this world, and you flip them upside down right on their ass. Don't tell you parents I used that word. And you can start that today.  "Think of an idea to change our world - and put it into ACTION.

And that's what I try to do with my Jesus packets; that have muffins, candy and a Bible tract.  Maybe those can make this world a little bit of a better place for my daughters when they grow up.  And we just elected a Republican president in the US, praise God!  I like to think maybe, just maybe, my packets had something to do with that lol.  I have dropped off about 3,000 packets so far all over Texas, so who knows.  Maybe you can come up with your own idea of how to make the world a better place, or make packets with Bible tracts like I do lol.  God bless!

Have the Courage to be Different

I love this sermon!  This is one of my top 5 favorite Joyce Meyer sermons.  And her necklace is pretty cool in it too. :)  God bless!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_gk-KCLXAw

CLEAN Dance Music

Sometimes I put on the music choice movie channels like 80's or 90's when my daughter says "want to dance!" But so many of the songs have such an annoying sexual theme. It's like sin ear pollution really. So this is one of my favorite songs to put on YouTube on our TV Roku for Serenity to dance to. It has a great beat and the words are great so we can both be happy yay! Go Hillsong! Thank you for putting out some actually cool Christian music that has great beats woot!


Search My Heart

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mqKT21HqqQ&app=desktop


And this is my all time favorite song by Hillsong to dance to.  The drum part in this song is super cool!

Freedom is Here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mh58EzK6KCE


Go Hillsong!  Best band of ALL Time!

And go see their movie "Let Hope Rise" in theatres now!  Woohoo! :)

I actually went to Sydney, Australia about 3 years ago because I wanted to go to the Hillsong worship college.  Didn't quite work out but it was still a great trip and I got to see their church yay!  They are awesome! :)

Stay in Peace

Isaiah 26:3   
"You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you."

This verse shows that as long as we trust God, we will have peace.  When we don't trust God we worry and are concerned too much.  God wants us to not worry and to trust that he has us and He is watching over us. 

"All things work together for the good of those who love God."  This is the main verse on why we can trust that God will work things out for us, no matter what happens to us.  Something that seems bad might happen to you, but you can believe that God will work it out for good and then you can trust God, and then you can have peace. :)

Another good reminder from this verse is the importance of keeping our mind stayed on God.  Like Paul said, "Set your minds on things above."  And Joyce Meyer points out that that means set your mind and KEEP it set on things above.  In Romans 8 Paul says, "The mind controlled by the flesh is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace."  We need to let God's Holy Spirit control our minds and direct our thoughts, rather than our flesh directing our thoughts.  We need to always think, "What would God want me to be thinking about right now?"  And the answer is: "Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."  Amen.  And if we think about only those things, we will have peace.  Worry, concern, and fear are not in that list.  Truth, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and positive things are. :)

If we can learn to set our minds on the things of God and on good things, we will be able to stay in peace, no matter what might be going on around us. 

Joyce Meyer wrote a famous book "The Battlefield of the Mind" and the mind really is a battlefield.  Well, it only is a battlefield if we are willing to fight against any negative or fearful thoughts.  It takes effort to force yourself to think on the positive things of your life.  It's so easy to let our minds go to the negative, but we need to be diligent and intentional to focus on the good things.  Amen. 

"Do everything without complaining or arguing so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine as lights in the world."  Amen!  I've always loved that verse!  We can't shine like lights if we are complaining all the time, because then we look just like the world.  We are called to be thankful and positive and at peace.  Amen.  Don't complain or worry or be negative.  Stay thankful so that you can stay in peace.  Amen.  :)

May God bless you all!

Next Living Place

Please pray for wisdom for us.  My hubby and I found a great rent house in Georgetown that I'm super excited about.  But there are so many to choose from so I hope we picked the best option.  It's by an awesome bike trial up there that's along the river.  So cool!  And we will be closer to my mom.  So I think it's a wise move but I hope it's the best possible set up for us.  Pray for us on that please.  Thanks and God bless ya'll! :)

The Way to be Saved and Go to Heaven

God says, "There is no one righteous, no, not one. For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."  But when we were still sinners, Jesus Christ died for us! Praise God! The payment for our sin is death; but the gift of God in Jesus is eternal life in heaven!  If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  Whoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved, no matter what you have done. Believe in your heart that Jesus lived, died and rose again to pay for your sins, and you will go to heaven. And then love God with all your heart and love people. May God bless you!

My Books

About 2 years ago I self published a bunch of books.  Here is a link to them for any interested:

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=lisa+bedrick+books

You can also just search Lisa Bedrick books on Amazon.  Most can be read with the "look inside" feature actually.  So you don't have to buy them to read them lol.  I compiled them mostly from my blogs on here.  Hope some of you can benefit from some of my books or blogs on here. 

May God bless you all! :)

Charismatic Church Abuse Testimony

Wow, here is an amazing testimony/story about the difficulties of certain cult churches.  Read if you have time.  It is very interesting.  This was an email to me regarding my book "On the Charismatic Movement."  I wrote about some things similar to what she talks about.

You can read most of it on Amazon with the look inside feature. :) Here is a link to it. https://www.amazon.com/Charismatic-Movement-Lisa-Bedrick-ebook/dp/B00NR2NPX2/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1475805408&sr=8-2&keywords=lisa+bedrick+books

"Hello Lisa. My name is Samantha and I am from the UK. I love to read and have more books than I can get through! I have recently discovered your books and am waiting for some more to be delivered.

I just wanted to share some things with you, if that is okay.

I have been a Christian for just over 3 years now. I am serious about trying to follow God and get to know him better. I am also serious about coming to an understanding of the truth, as there are so many false teachings out there.

Last year I moved to a new town. It wasn't a move I wanted, and I found it upsetting. I had been attending an Anglican church prior to moving.

I felt lost and alone. I had noticed that there was a small church up the road from where I lived, so one evening I decided to go. I really felt something inside me telling me not to go, but I went.

It is a Pentecostal church, but I didn't know much about different types of churches at the time. I just knew it was very different. From day one I felt that I didn't belong there. I felt uncomfortable. People kept wanting to hug and kiss me, but I didn't like that. I was told it is not normal to not want to be hugged and kissed in a "family," and it actually upset some people. Some people wouldn't listen to me and would still try to grab me anyway.

Over the course of the year I felt intimidated by one of the leaders, who said and did things which hurt me greatly. Whenever there was an issue I was told that I am the problem.

I also struggled with accepting some of the beliefs and practices at the church. In the prayer meetings people would shout and scream and become hysterical, and everyone would speak in "tongues" all at the same time. I found it frightening and chaotic. However, I was told it is normal, and that I just didn't understand. At times though I felt the air itself shift, and there was a sense of evil. Nobody else seemed to notice anything though.

I have numerous health problems and have been told that God wants me to be healed. I have been told that I am not healed because of sin/lack of faith/etc. I have been told that I have demons and need deliverance ministry to get rid of them. These things all hurt and made me feel afraid.

I was encouraged to tell Satan and his demons to get lost, to "claim" things, etc. There seemed to be a belief that a Christian should have no health problems, no money problems, no relationship problems, etc. Anything God wants us to do should give us a sense of peace. If not, it is not from God. I was told to pray a certain prayer three times a day for a month, because it is a powerful prayer. I was told I would be a different women at the end of the month.

I disagreed with some things, but I went along with it for so long. I wanted to fit in, to belong. I was so lonely. I had also been told that if I left the church I would be following Satan, doing exactly what he wants. I was told I would be running away if I left. So I stayed. And I continued to struggle. I started to dread going to the church. It became a massive ordeal to me. I would get home and cry until I was nearly sick. I started to try and avoid the leader I felt afraid of, after talking to her made no difference. When I asked for space from her, I was accused of having a bad attitude to a fellow believer in the church, and that I should no longer attend, as it would be making a mockery of Christ and the church. I was devastated and couldn't understand why I could not request space from her, but she was free to do and say what she pleased to me. The pastor did change his mind about it though and I was encouraged to just attend.

However, I became extremely unwell due to the stress and upset. Several months ago I had to stop going to church as I was very unwell physically, and still am. My doctors think extreme stress may have damaged my stomach, and I am waiting to see somebody at the hospital. It meant I spent more time alone with God and reading the Bible. I also asked God what he wanted me to do.

God really opened my eyes, and I saw clearly that the things taught and practised in the church are not Biblical. I saw the superstition, the expectation that God will ultimately do what we want, I saw how people follow the pastor without question. I was the only one to challenge things, and it seemed it was wrong to them.

God also repeatedly revealed to me that he wanted me to leave the church. I was sad, as I still didn't want to. I still wanted to hold on. But no, God confirmed to me over and over that he wanted me to leave.

Not only that, but I will soon be moving home again, as I am still not happy where I am and am having problems with my flat. I feel positive about it. But I have been told I am running away, I am isolating myself, I am listening to the enemy, etc. They all think I am falling away from God, when in reality I am trying to follow God! I feel so much pressure to conform. I don't want them to think I am weak, cowardly, running away, deceived, etc. But I know I need to obey God, and that I can't control what people think. They will think what they will think. But to them, if they don't like it, then they think it cannot be from God.

I have also been incredibly hurt at the judgement I have received. I have been judged and berated for not going to church, no matter how many times I told them I was sick. Not one person offered to visit me or help me get to church. All I felt was judgement. And now that I am moving, they think I am running away.

I am praying to God to open my eyes even more, and to give me discernment. I am grateful to him for opening my eyes to the deception.

But I just feel so alone, and so exhausted from trying to explain and defend myself. I can see that nothing I say will change their beliefs or what they think about me. I would really like to remain friends with some of them, but how can I when our beliefs differ so much? How can I when they believe in "name it and claim it" theories? How can I when they look at my health problems and see lack of faith and active sin? How can I when I know they think I have demons that need to be cast out?

I feel that I have been dying inside over this past year at the church. I have never experienced anything like this. It actually reminds me of a cult in some ways. Even though I am starting to see the lies, it is still painful.

I also feel quite apprehensive about finding another church when I move. I am worried it will be hard to trust again.

I know God can work everything for good though, and I know he has been using every situation to draw me closer to him.

I just wanted to share this with you. I guess I feel quite alone with my experience.

Thank you for reading this."

Jesus Purses

I often make something I call Jesus purses.  I started off making them with canvas lining and any kind of fabric for the outside.  Now I make them from oil cloth fabric, which you can find on Amazon, if you want to make some too. :)  It is kind of a material like a thick plastic table cloth, which is good so then they are waterproof. 

There are inexpensive purse straps you can buy on amazon, or one time I used climbing rope, like the flat and wide kind.  That looked pretty cool too.  The one inch wide kind is best. 

The purses can be a great craft to do with children also. :)  Basically just cut oil cloth or any fabric into a rectangle and seal the two sides, either with a hot glue gun or even clear packing tape can work.  You could also sew the sides if you want, if it's a soft fabric.  And then write on the front encouraging things like "Jesus Loves You" or "Saved and Loved" or "Forgiven" or "Fear Not, God Loves You."  :)  The best is dimensional fabric paint for this; white or black shows up best. 

And for the straps, glue them on the inside of the two sides, or sew them into the sides.  It helps to put hot glue gun glue on the insides of the top before the straps to take some of the weight stress away from the straps. :)

And then drop the purses on doorsteps or give them to friends!  Or you can leave them in bathrooms wherever you go, which seems odd, but personally I prefer more subtle ways of witnessing. 

And put Bible tracts in them!  And candy or cookies, if you feel led to. :) 

May God bless you all!

Amazing Life Story

Here is a phenomenal life story/testimony for any who haven't heard it yet.  One of the best testimonies I've ever heard for sure!  God bless!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I11L71PD3Lw&app=desktop

Cinnamon Fruit Muffins

I created a new recipe which I now make to give out in my purses or Jesus packets with my bracelets :)  I call them Cinnamon Fruit Muffins.  Here's the recipe for any interested in making some.  They taste great!

5 cups flour

3 cups sugar

3 tsp baking soda

4 eggs

3 cups milk or water

1 cup raisins

1/2 cup canned sliced peaches

1/3 cup cinnamon

And you can add butter or veg oil if you want, but they taste great without either.  And then they are more healthy woot!

Enjoy!  :)  May God bless ya'll!

Song 10: You are Deserving of Praise

You are glorious, marvelous
Radiant in your holiness
You are powerful, the risen king
Very deserving of all of our praise

Holy, amazing, wonderful
You are
Fabulous, magnificent, brilliant
You will always be

You are righteous, perfect
Lifted up over all of us
You are all knowing, our kind father
Totally deserving of all of our love

Halloween Witnessing

Happy almost Halloween everyone!  And yay for fall!  Here are some good Bible tracts to hand out on or before Halloween or to leave everywhere you go!  How amazing would that be to leave a trail of Bible tracts in every place you go woot!  God would think that would be totally amazing of you. :) The Bible says, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news."  That good news being that God loves all and sent Jesus to die for all!  Praise God :) 

Also these tracts can help you combat all the evil of Halloween by sharing the gospel more than ever!  Satan is advertised a TON around Halloween time; shouldn't God be advertised even more?  If you have a desire to do that, these tracts are great!  And may God bless any of you in an extra big way that buy these and pass them out or leave them all over!  May God bless you all!

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00I5VRVNK/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=AVV1GX1FDRLWO

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NU37NQS/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=AVV1GX1FDRLWO

Answers to Prayer

I love a story Francis Chan tells often of how God answers his prayers.  He said he was out golfing with friends one day but wasn't doing as well because he didn't have some special driver.  So he was praying about it and that he would want one.  Then the next day he was preaching at a church and the pastor there randomly gave him exactly that, what he had been praying about.  Pretty awesome for sure.  It just showed him that God really cares about him. :)

And here is my own little miracle story.  Mine is about how I met Ben.  I had moved to Kansas City to live with a friend about 4 years ago.  My fiancé had died about 5 months before that.  I was missing him and feeling very single and alone.  On Valentine's Day I went to get notecards at CVS to write Bible verses on to memorize.  I saw all the cute Valentine's Day gifts and was thinking how sad it would be that no one would be getting one for me that year.  I went home and started crying in my car.  I was asking God to please bring me another great guy like my fiancé that had died.  Then I emailed my now husband along with some other random guys on a dating website, just a simple "hey how are you?"  Two weeks later Ben emailed me back, we talked on the phone, and I knew just after that first phone conversation that he was God's answer to my prayer.  I knew he was the one.  They say when you know you know and I did.  I was overjoyed.  I remember thinking while talking to him on the phone, "Wow finally!  Finally a guy who loves God as much as I do!"  He read some poems to me that he wrote to God and I could see he really, really loved God.  I actually was balling as he read them because I was so amazed how perfect he was for me. lol

So that was my biggest answer to prayer.  That I cried out to God for something and two weeks later God answered my prayer.

But a lesson in that is that you can't just pray for something and do nothing yourself.  Like you can't pray that God will send you a wife or husband and not at least try an online dating site or go somewhere where you might meet someone.  You have to do something and God will do the rest. :) Amen.  May God answer at least one of your big prayers too so you can know how much he loves you too!  God bless! :)

Francis Chan Sermons are Great!

Just listened to two challenging sermons by Francis Chan in the past couple days. In one he was saying how important it is to love God over money, which I know, but it's always good to be reminded of that. He was saying how filthy rich any of us in America are and how can we ever complain about not having enough money when most of the world only makes like $2 a day?  Seems like it would be more than that and hopefully it is, but that was a good point and a good reminder :)

And then today he was making a great point that it doesn't matter how intelligent we are, would people be able to say of us that we walked like Jesus?

Hopefully that could be said of me with my Jesus packet making.  But maybe I lack the boldness that Jesus had and I should talk to people face to face. It's always hard to know what to do, cause it seems that people these days more than ever like their space and privacy, so dropping tracks in random places might be best, instead of physically handing them to people and trying to talk to them. Sometimes face to face evangelism only makes people hate Christianity even more, so that's not good. :( But Jesus didn't really do that actually. He mostly gave sermons and spoke to crowds. He didn't do a lot of one on one conversations with people, except the woman at the well.  So to live like Jesus would be to teach large crowds. Some are able to do that in pastoring churches and others do that in writing in a blog like me lol.

It works I think :) And maybe this blog writing is reaching more people than if I did speak in public to large crowds, who knows.  I guess I won't know till I get to heaven, and then maybe I will meet all of you who have read my blog and hear how it hopefully helped you in your walk with God.

But no matter what, I think God is pleased with me and what I have done and hopefully He will say to me one day that I lived pretty close to how Jesus did.  Hopefully :) May God bless you all!

Song 9: God is Marvelous

(I was inspired to write this after watching a Francis Chan sermon.  He talks a lot about how much the church kind of sees God as common, but we should always be in awe of Him.  Amen :)

You are holy, set apart
Totally different
Than anything I've known

You are special, marvelous
Totally amazing
For everything you've done

I don't wanna take you
for granted
Or forget to stay
in awe of you
I don't wanna think you
are common
May I always, always
worship you

You are radiant, glorious
Far above all of us
You are perfect, excellent
Everything you do is just

I don't wanna take you
for granted
Or forget to stay
in awe of you
I don't wanna think you
are common
May I always, always
worship you

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmfgyXCarQI

Song 8: To My Daughters

I wanted a better song to sing to my girls besides rock a by baby, where the poor baby always ends up falling from a tree.  Such an odd song really :(  God bless!

My precious girl
You are so loved
You are so special to me
There are three words
To really say how I feel
I love you, I love you
I love you

Your eyes, your smile
You shine just like a star
Your tiny hands and feet
Are so adorable
I love you, I love you,
I love you

You are the perfect gift from God
You bring me so much joy
I love to see you dance and sing
Everything you do is so cute
I love you, I love you
I love you

I would do anything for you
I'll always, always protect you
You will never be alone
I pray that God will guide you
I love you, I love you
I love you

Me singing it on youtube...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gd7C8rjlDvE

Song 7: Stay in Hope

Hope brings Joy, Joy brings strength
God make me strong with my hope in you
Hope is power, hope brings life
Lord I wanna stay in faith and hope

I don't wanna doubt you
And what you can do in me
I wanna live hopeful
That great things are ahead
I don't wanna live my life hopeless
I wanna believe I can do All things
with you

Hope is faith, faith God loves
God help me never lack in faith
Hope fills me, with your peace
Lord I know you will always provide

I don't wanna doubt you
And what you can do in me
I wanna live hopeful
That great things are ahead
I don't wanna live my life hopeless
I wanna believe I can do All things
with you

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GP2WZGwi3MI

Song 6: Show Me How

So many people don't have hope
So many people don't have faith
So many people are so lost
We gotta show them the way

So many people are in pain
So many people don't get loved
So many people are alone
God they need your help today

So show me how
To reach the lost
Show me how
To light the way
Show me how
To shine your love
Cause your love is what they need

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3gzeahbaSw

Song 5: God I'm Sorry and Thank you

^{The 5th song I wrote :)}

God I'm sorry for the times
When I seem ungrateful
I'm sorry for the times
When I complain
I know that you have blessed me
Again and again
And I wanna take some time
Just to say

Thank you, Thank you
Thank you for all you've done for me
Thank you, Thank you
I pray that somehow I can repay you

God I'm sorry for every time
That I sinned and grieved you
I thank for how you forgave me
I know that you love me
Despite all I have done
And I need to take some time
Just to say

Thank you, Thank you
Thank you for all you've done for me
Thank you, Thank you
I pray that somehow I can repay you


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oCkwo4uheM

Judging Others vs. Reminding Others

Is there a difference between judging others and simply reminding people what the Bible says?  Yes. 

What is the difference?

With judging you are condescending and acting like you have it all together while pointing the finger at someone else.  That is wrong of course.  Jesus said "Take the log out of your own eye before you try to take the speck out of your brother's eye."  Often times people do this because they actually want to forget about their own sin, so they focus on your sin instead of their own.  That is what the Bible is talking about when it says "judge not lest you be judged.  For you do the very things that you judge others for...."  If we are being a hypocrite in our judging, and doing what we are telling others not to do, that is what the Bible says we are to never do.  That kind of judging is never ok. 

But sometimes we do need to remind each other of what the Bible says, when the Bible is clear that something is wrong, because we tend to forget, or we never heard it in the first place.

Here is one of my favorite verses, what Paul said to Timothy before he died, "Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction." 

So sometimes Christians are supposed to correct and rebuke others.  This could be applied just to pastors, but since pastors now aren't directly involved with their members for the most part, which is sad, we kind of have to pastor each other.  And in order to correct and rebuke another one would have to judge.

And lastly this passage is the clearest example of when "judging" is ok in the church:

1 Cor. 5:1-12

"It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that even pagans do not tolerate: A man is sleeping with his father’s wife.

References for 1 Corinthians 5:1

• Cross References

• 1 5:1 - Lev 18:8 ; Dt 22:30 ; 27:20

2 And you are proud! Shouldn’t you rather have gone into mourning and have put out of your fellowship the man who has been doing this?

References for 1 Corinthians 5:2

• Cross References

• 2 5:2 - 2Co 7:7-11
• 3 5:2 - ver 13

3 For my part, even though I am not physically present, I am with you in spirit. As one who is present with you in this way, I have already passed judgment in the name of our Lord Jesus on the one who has been doing this.....                                                                       

References for 1 Corinthians 5:3

• Cross References

• 4 5:3 - Col 2:5 ; 1Th 2:17

12 What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside?                                                                                        

God will judge those outside. “Expel the wicked person from among you.”
             

So Paul is saying we are not supposed to judge those who aren't saved, because as the Bible says, they are slaves to sin and in a sense cannot help it.  But for those who are saved, we are supposed to call them out on things. 

God calls us to be accountable to what we know, or to what we should know.  For those who consider themselves saved, God expects us to act like we are.  Paul says many times, "Walk in a manner worthy of your calling."   None of us are perfect, but we can try to do the best that we can do.  We can try our best to follow what the Bible says we are to not do, and what we are to do.  Amen. 

May God bless you all!

We Can Do More Than We Think :)

It really is amazing all the things we are capable of.  Satan tries to keep us feeling like we can't do anything, but we can do anything we put our mind to!  "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."  Amen!

About 4 years ago I started my blog.  I never thought my writing was good enough for others to read it, but who knew people would like reading what I write. :)

And I never thought I would publish a book but I self published a bunch about 3 years ago.  They are on Amazon.com for any interested. :)  I haven't sold many but it's still cool that I did that. 

I never thought I could make dresses but I did that a few months ago and I like the dresses I made. :)

I never thought I could make purses but I did that recently too.  They are simple but still cool. 

I hadn't even tried writing a song for the last 17 years, because I always thought that was too hard,  but now today I wrote 4 in one day.  Granted they are pretty simple but it's still cool. :)

So never limit yourself.  Never say that you can't do something.  Just try and you might surprise yourself. 

We are all capable of a lot more than we realize.  We all can do almost anything that we dream of doing.  If you put forth enough effort, you most likely can accomplish whatever it is that you want to accomplish. 

May God bless you all!

Song 4: I Love You Jesus

Climbing up this mountain
Longing to see your face
To feel your voice surround me
Like a mighty rushing wave

I want to see your glory
And forget the world behind
I long to be just me and you
And rest in your love and grace

I love how you love me
I love how you comfort me
I love you Jesus
You're all I want

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Om9akxw-z-k

America America

Here is my somewhat comical rewrite of our famous America the Beautiful song:

Oh beautiful we are no more,
For we are deep in sin,
For we do all the things that God
has already condemned
America! America!
We're headed straight to hell
God is displeased with us right now
From sea to shinning sea :(

The Characteristics of a Christian

I think it's important I write something to define what a Christian is, according to what the Bible says. There seems to be much confusion over that in our church today. 

Is being a Christian just praying a prayer for God to come into your heart and that's it?  No.  That prayer should be accompanied by an actual repentance over your sin first.  And that is only the beginning to it all.  If you don't try to live a holy life after that, that prayer you may have prayed does not mean anything. 

If you believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, does that alone make you a Christian?  No.  That's part of it, but that isn't the whole thing.  That also is only the beginning to it all. 

What is the whole thing to being a Christian?  When can someone really for sure know they are saved?

Here are some characteristics of what a true genuine Christian will look like, according to how the Bible describes that a Christian will be:

1. They will be grieved over their sin.  They will agree with what the Bible says sin is.  When they sin, they will repent and try to do better in the future.  They will be convicted by the Holy Spirit when they sin. 

2.  They will have a heart to tell others about Jesus.  If you REALLY believe that Jesus is the ONLY way to heaven and you know that most of America doesn't really believe that, you will try as much as you can to try to tell others about Jesus.  Even if you are too afraid to make any attempt at sharing the gospel, the desire will still be there, if you are really saved.  Because that was the great commission given to ALL of us by Jesus. 

3. You will try to love others as best as you can.  When you don't love others as you know God would want you to, you apologize and try to make amends. 

4.  You forgive others when they hurt you.  The Bible literally says if you cannot forgive others who hurt you, God will NOT forgive you.  That's pretty serious. 

5. You have a desire to know God.  You have a desire to listen to sermons even if you can't make it to church.  You have a desire to listen to worship music and keep your focus on God as much as you can.  As Paul said, "Set your mind on things above."

6. You are repulsed by vulgar movies and shows.  You are repulsed when people around you talk in a vulgar and sick way.  And in general you are angry about sin.  This is righteous anger, like what Jesus felt when he turned the tables in the temple. 

7. You recognizes that the Christian walk is not just about what you don't do, but it is also about what you do as well.  Like the Bible says, "Faith without works is dead."  You try to help others and love others and make the world a better place.  I know many non-Christians do this, and that is great, but if someone is truly a Christian, they will for sure try to do good to others as well. 

If you have any others that are important that I forgot, feel free to mention it in a comment. 

God bless! :)

Homosexuality is a Sin

I haven't written about homosexuality too much because I am annoyed myself that Christians seems to just focus on abortion and homosexuality.  There are other issues they should focus on trying to fix too like racism and poverty, of course.  But I will write my two cents about it.  I just wrote a brief post on how sad I am that subliminal messages about homosexuality are now all over the media!  In youtube adds, on TV shows etc.  It seems like homosexuality is every where and people are proud of it.  But I don't think it's something that people should be proud of.  What happened to people feeling shame over sin?  And yes homosexuality is a sin.  I can't believe how far America has fallen in our morality.  What happened to censorship?  What happened to us actually trying to do good things?

Here are the two main verses that show why homosexuality is a sin:

Romans 1:25-27, "They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.
²⁶ Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. ²⁷ In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error."

Romans 1 lays out the downfall of a society and how it can fall into more and more sinful ways.  First it says that these people just didn't glorify God or give him thanks, which has been America for a very long time.  Then their hearts were darkened.  Then they worshipped idols instead of God, which in current America that is like when we worship our cars or clothes or just money.  Then they engaged in various sinful sexual acts. And then the last step is engaging in homosexual sinful acts, as Romans 1:27 talks about. 

Here is another good verse:

1 John 1:6 "If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth." 

To live in perpetual unrepentant homosexuality is a sin and it is to walk in darkness.  Granted all people sin, but to be a practicing homosexual is to be living in perpetual sin.  Christians mess up and sin but then repent and turn the other way, at least for a time.  This has been the pattern in my own life.  When I sin I recognize that what I did was wrong, feel grieved over it, repent and try to do what is right, and stop doing what I know is wrong.  The issue is if someone does not even recognize when sin is sin and does not try at all to stop doing it.  That is what it is to live in darkness. 

I understand that even some Christians want to fight me when I write about homosexuality because maybe they have a friend that is gay.  But that doesn't make it any less of a sin.  If I had a friend that robbed banks all the time would that make robbing banks ok?  No, of course not.  Homosexuality is a sin because the Bible says that it is. 

And why is it so serious?  Because it essentially represents the height of the downfall of a society according to Romans 1.  And that is why it makes me so sad that it is all over American media now.  It just shows that we have fallen pretty much as low as we can now.  We have hit rock bottom morally. 

Yes I understand that homosexual people have a reason for being gay.  It was usually because they were molested by someone of the same sex or in a violent way by someone of the opposite sex.  But I was a victim of sexual molest too and that didn't make me gay, because I CHOSE to not be.  Anyone can chose to not sin, if the Spirit of God really is in them. 

I understand it seems almost 100% of our current American society was molested in some way as kids, but that doesn't excuse current sin.  I know when we are victims at an early age it makes us more weak in certain areas and we are more prone to certain sins, but we are still held responsible by God for any sin we commit.  All of us will have to give an account to God on that final day for every single thing we did and said.  I take that very seriously, and everyone else really should too.

God is holy.  He loves us, but he also hates our sins.  To turn a blind eye to homosexuality is to ignore sin. To say that it is ok is to be in error.  And it is a disservice to any friend that might be caught up in it.  Because if they really think nothing is wrong with it, then they are at odds with God and are not walking in God's grace without even realizing it. 

I do not mean all this in an attacking way, but people need to wake up and warn people.  It is like how I have heard in sermons, that if you're friend had cancer wouldn't you tell them if they didn't know and tell them how they could be cured???  It is the same with sin. 

If our friends are sinking in their own sin and we know the antidote, Jesus Christ and believing in Him, shouldn't we tell them?

The first step to being saved is to see your own sin as sin.  Then you can see that you need a savior.  But if you are not able to see your own sin as sin how can you say you know God?  Because once the Holy Spirit is in us we agree with everything the Bible says and we see sin as sin more clearly.  To not be convicted about sin is to not be saved.  If we are saved, we will be convicted about any sin we commit and we will feel the need to repent to God about it.   

My prayer is that God may use my words to bring a bit of holiness back to America and any who read it.  May we value righteousness and hate sin again, as we should and as America used to.  May we guide others in gentleness though and not hatred.  May we love others back to purity, because it is God's kindness that leads us to repentance, and share the GOOD news that Jesus CAN save them from themselves and from sin.  They don't have to be slaves any longer.  God can set them free!  In Jesus' name Amen. 

May God bless you all and I love you all!