THE WIDOW WITH TWO MITES

This is an excerpt from my Bible.

     Jesus was teaching the people about the hypocrisy of the scribes. He described them as lusting for recognition, seeking the best positions, stealing from the helpless, yet making a pretense of being religious (Mark 12:38-40).  Sitting in the women's court where the offering receptacles were located, Jesus used the woman as an example. The comparison is spectacular.
     Widowhood was one of the most vulnerable positions of the time. A widow had less capacity for earning than slaves; and unless she had family or friends to protect and help her she was most likely destitute and perhaps even homeless.
     This particular widow was down on her last two mites (worth a fraction of a penny). Jesus drew the attention of the disciples to this woman, who brought delight to His heart. The sound of her tiny offering as it dropped into the metal receptacle must have been pitiful compared with the rattling of the many coins from the rich.
     This was the last event of Jesus' public teaching. The act of this humble, needy widow seems to summarize all His teaching. She was not meeting a great need (ultimately God's recourses are unlimited), but rather she was recognizing that everything belongs to God. Because she was in His hands, she could willingly and joyously offer all she had to Him.


*If we would recognize all we have is not ours, we would bear fruit, we would put honor where it's due. God would surely be shown unto this nation of affluence and greed, and to this world who needs. No doubt that the Holy Spirit would move dramatically throughout all peoples...

"Kids in Africa don't get to eat, finish!"

We've all heard this at the dinner table. For One... i would like to note the idea of leftovers..mom...

Secondly, did we ever think that maybe more edibles which are untouched by consumers get wasted more?

More than 96 billion pounds of edible "surplus" food is thrown away in the U.S. Each year. It is estimated that almost 27% of our food supply is wasted.

Let's examine Walmart/publix/kroger/....

They over stock in everything, milk gets thrown out once it's reached expiration date (even though we all (should) know the milk is good for a while after the exp. date...) just like other foods. If walmart really supports their communities like they brag about then they could give away the foods to homeless shelters, charities, ext. 

Expiration dates are a bunch of bull honkey if we are just being honest... if it's in a can.. it is going to last. (Not that it's the healthiest..)

We could stop producing so much as a solution.---> Nipping the surplus food and packaging required for the food would also decrease the amount of trash we dump in landfills. 

If big corporations refuse to lessen amount produced (money money money...) the middle man companies (grocery stores) could at least donate the profitless edibles...

sheesh... Big Corps (who are idiots) really strike a cord with me.....it's not even all about money even in the pagan world!

Psalm 63

David was a lot of things... murderer, adulteress, liar... but he sure did seek after our Father...

Psalm 63 (My paraphrase)
Joy in the Fellowship of God


O God, You are my God;
Early in the morning I will seek You;
My soul thirsts for You;
My flesh longs for You;
Because nothing this world offers satisfies me.

So I have sought you in the place where Your people gather,
To see Your power and Your glory.

Because Your lovingkindness is better than life,
My lips shall praise You.
Thus I will bless You while I live;
I will obediently lift up my hands in Your name.
My soul shall be satisfied as with honey and tender kisses,
And my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips.

When I remember You on my bed,
I meditate on You,
Because You have been my help,
Therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will surely rejoice!
My soul clings as a child to You;
Your steady hand lifts me up.

But those who seek my life, to destroy it,
Shall not find peace.
They shall fall by the sword;
Their flesh devoured by wild animals.

But the king shall rejoice in God;
Everyone who swears by Him shall glory;But the mouth of those who speak lies shall be stopped.

Time Efficiency

Check it out... everyone has 24 hours each day.
We are supposed to manage that time efficiently. (This..i'm not so good at.)
Right now I have laundry to fold and put away, a floor to sweep, always a need for studying, gotta shower and get ready, gotta clean up from dinner...CCF...maybe visit cousin...sleep...take trash out...

Okay I started writing this last night and I had to go and finish everything I needed to. So...

The point is i completely forgot what my point was. hahaha awesome. I think maybe God just wanted me to realize I shouldnt be blogging, stumbling, or booking as much as I do...

Legalism and Boundaries

Im in big trouble when it comes to being right.

See I really could care less if I am for my bragging sake.. I just want to be right in the end, and that means correction of course, so Ill know how to not live wrongly. I cant stand the idea of serving a God as big as He is and do it the wrong way!!

Thats just wrong!

So we sought pure doctrine, broke off into separate denominations... now what? I grew up in the methodist and baptist churches, honestly making fun of the other denominations, the hard core ones. what the heck Case..!!! I guess lukewarm will hate fire. Okay so now I realize I need to expose myself to everything and figure out what is right by studying and allowing God to reveal Himself.

But can I make a god or idol of this? is it possible to desire right relationship which leads to right living too much?

It really REALLY bothers me that I might not understand who God really is. I know we learn all the time, but isn't this in particular better learned sooner than later? We will need it later! In fact we need it soon!

And okay... I told someone recently that I was over being legalistic. Don't get me wrong, Gods put me through bounds and leaps when it comes to change for the better, but the fear of being wrong in His name holds rules kinda tightly. How will I know where boundaries are without rules? ..Are there boundaries?

"Everything is permissible but not beneficial."
I cant tell you how many times i've said this... Lord help me if I speak lies!
What it means is I can do everything because i am saved through grace but I wont because it doesn't benefit the cause. the cause is loving God through loving people.
 (Grace= Gift undeserved, ie salvation.)
If God HATES sin, (which I know for a big fat fact He does) then everything wouldn't be permissible would it?

You know one of my biggest prayers is that God would send someone to lead me in the right direction. He knows I need it! Then again do I not think He cant lead me in the right direction?

Im too curious for my own good... If im being honest I truely desire comfort and an easy life but seeking after God aint gonna be it the way the world has it. (albeit I already understand He gives joy and peace and such)  Haha Christians are all crazy... thank the Lord for His hand moving our hearts and not ourselves! 


Run To You - The Rocket Summer

The Favorite Gifts I've Received

Firstly, God has definitely given the best gifts ever. Salvation, Love, fruits of the spirit, wisdom, family and friends. But indirectly God has also been pretty darn awesome too.

One of my favorite gifts is a gold pearl ring from my Granna Lee and Big Daddy. The recession hit them pretty hard, and they wanted to give me something because I graduated High School. (which is ridiculous.. it was never hard, but hey.) So out of their poverty and love they gave me Granna Lee's anniversary ring. It is way better than cash could ever dream of being. They could have sold it easily, it's GORGEOUS!! And they put so much thought into it, and presented it to me with so much pride and joy. You know... my family however crazy and dysfunctional, rocks.

This gift may be cliche... but time is also a favorite. Time is something everyone, rich and poor, have the exact amount of. I believe if you make time for people, and present it to them as a gift in love, just time spent with you, you will please our King. (Our time is a tool God GAVE US to use for his glory, not our own satisfaction.) Not to mention the people.
-Side note, just as spending time with people is the ultimate gift, not making time for people is the opposite of love, a form of hate. How dare we tell people they aren't worthy of our time? As if it is ours to begin with!

Once, a friend Josh, gave me a .. well idk what to call it. He cut down a tree branch, shaved and sanded it down to a slanted state, and nailed the image of a cross onto it. Then shaved the nails down too. All by hand. Then coated it in a shiny finish. I love this because he spent time on it! It was awesome!!

Call me a girl, but my next favorite gifts are rings from my mom. (I love jewelry with a past.) Turquoise is one of my favorite gems, along with my birthstone amethyst, and its a major theme in her jewels. She was such a hippy! The rings were mostly of Cherokee background or at least made by them. One is an eagle/totem looking ring. She is one of the most creative persons i know. She sized down her childhood bracelet to form a ring (professionally..creativity doesn't equal know-how).
---**Lauren Statham. I know when you read this you're going to think about how we aren't creative of our selves its all God , He created everything there is to be created so we are kind of just spittin out His bi products and I couldnt think of a different word if you must know haha.

I think encouragement is also a form of gift giving. From person to person, expressing love, by geniality or through advice. I love to see people being obedient to the Lord and that in turn is an encouragement. I love to see friendships bud and flourish in the name of Christ, Him being their binding force.

Hugs are a great gift. Its the physical way of saying, "I accept you as you are." Think about it! You embrace the person fully. EMBRACE. That word in itself is comforting. You know.. we hardly Grasp the Gospel of Christ... can you imagine what gifts God could show us supporting His divinity if we would only embrace Him?

Can't talk about hugs without mentioning Kisses. Something my family does whenever we see each other is Kiss each other on the face. Just anywhere works. My sister and I actually kissed for the first time the other day... she snuck in a lipper haha that crazy girl. Anyway, these physical gifts are a blessing to my heart.


God has given me the best people to be surrounded by, and I try to express my gratitude to Him but He knows it wont ever be enough. Still... its all I got. But you'll notice, all the gifts were given to me by flawed people, and some were because of imperfect circumstances. They were all so real in their giving, so genuine. I love physically showing love because it is such a genuine, such a real form of giving, it's a way of unifying and setting apart true relationships.

Ipods...

Generally I like to think when I exercise, verses listening to music.

There is just something awesome about running or "pumping" iron...okay its the endorphins my body releases but at the very core it really is God. He did design our bodies you know! Often the only alone time I get is when I drive and when I run, so I use it to think. Maybe some of ya'll hit up the weed and get into deep thinking... haha I dont guess I blame you but I do think it's wiser to seek truth when sober.

Anyway! What is it with our generation? Why do we always need to have music barricading our thoughts? Often poisoning our minds... Quick example. If you're listening to sad music, angry music, you will stay angry. If you listen to music that displays sex I can bet you what you'll be thinking about! Not all music is bad, in fact i'm all for so much of it! Music definitely has it's place in God's kingdom, on earth for fun and romance and worship...but too much of a good thing is a bad thing.
 I believe it has become a god to much of our world's and church's youth, and the latter are probably earnest in their desire to please our King!

And if you take away music from ppl they freak out!! Its such a huge deal!

Story time..

When I was 13 I listened to Alternative Rock constantly. I had to have it to sleep (and I really never went to sleep I just laid there singing songs in my head.). And I never really stocked up on CD's or Itunes so I listened to the music channel on the TV. I remember coming home from school one day and my parents had switched from dish to cable or something like that. I immediately ran to my room and checked to see if I could still listen to the music.. nope! I cried and got so angry...(I know.. melodramatic). Went on for everrr. Pretty much till I started making my own music actually.

 you see? We need to check our hearts for even the most ridiculous gods.

But we can't forget to pray, to be us in our thoughts. I am some what of a.. crazy.. in that I believe in some conspiracies. The devil has monopolized the world...believe it or not.. so it is up to you and me to keep God's delicate balance of life. (Which is not very delicate.)

Obedience in Worship

Those of you who read this... ive been feeling very strongly about some issues that i know it is not me who instilled the thoughts pertaining worship.

3 Main Points: Worship= Obedience, Posture=Obedience, Togetherness=Obedience. 

It all started towards the end of my senior year, being a busy semi-fashionable girl I felt the need to get all prettied up for church and also felt the need to sleep in as much as possible. That combination resulted in being late to church...every single sunday, but I would make sure I was there for the sermon. Then one sunday our music minister Robby talked about how singing is not the intro to the church service. It is a form of worship, the making of music, singing songs of praise to our King! The music is PART of the service, not a pre-service deal.

((((and sometimes, I do believe if the church is so lead, to keep singing the whole time! It is definitely important to be organized, but the Holy Spirit is not bound by time, you see, so neither should we...Anyway..)))))

Robby got me to thinking. 

Worship is obedience...!!! Yeah yeah we've all heard this...maybe... but you know when you know something but all the sudden it has intensely increased in importance? Thats what happened. Like when you know Chickfila has awesome milkshakes but its not that important to you until you have a coupon for those milkshakes.. that feeling except way more urgent. 

So if worship is obedience, then that includes everything involved in the service. Im not talking about the speaker or tithes. just worship. Specifically about posture. God is a big.. BIG God. The songs we sing often say, "we lift our hands" "Bow to our knees" or anything like.." I love you" "I give you all my life"...

Do we really sing these songs with our hands by our sides? Yes there is a time to be still, but we are FREE from our death chains and God has taken our shackles off of our feet so we can DANCE!Yes You.. to dance. To lift your hands, to clap, to get out of your "uncomfort zone" cause I promise that your comfort zone with God is more important than any self image you can come up with. 

Okay so what about the songs we sing that are about us as the church, like.. How Great Is Our God for example.

We stand, some raise hands, some clap, lots close eyes, no one touches another. But WE are singing TOGETHER about how great our God is! Shouldn't we acknowledge this TOGETHER? Why dont we make eye contact and rejoice together? We worship so distantly from each other trying to get closer to our God but cant we see that there IS a place for this? To hold hands together, as the church, the Bride of Christ, in awh of Him? to not be afraid of moving about and touching another person in fear of distracting... that is where the church needs to be. 

But hey... thats not from me. 

Regrets

"I dont have time to maintain these regrets when I think about the way He loves me.."

I know I'm not the only one who is inspired by the artists words here.

Everyone can look back in their life and think about all the decisions they made and cannot take back. Permanent damage...or so it seems. Of course our mistakes, our sinful past cant be taken back.. whats done is done. BUT for me, because God has redeemed my soul and I now can experience His love because my life is His, my sins are as far away from God's infinite mind as possible. If God doesn't worry about my insecure, lust-filled, murderous, damaging past then what makes me think I need to?

Its a lie from the devil for us to think to get over something we need to keep focus on not doing it...we become what we focus on. We need to move  on.. we know we are sinners! Right now.. present day we are sinners. But if we do not press on and continue in our growth verses dwelling on our past, be it yesterday or an 5 minutes ago or 10 years ago, WE WONT GET ANYWHERE!

So we really do have to have a steady mindset.. if you are one to struggle with regrets like i have.. of giving it to God and not having time for them! We DONT have time for worries... God's plans take time and devotion so our devotion cannot be put towards our past. plain and simple.

And by the way, if you read that first paragraph and dont have the redemption that I do, you can have it too. Its free and yours for the taking. I guess I should mention what it is. It is Jesus' love for you!! Can I just say it's the most intense love ever, it surpasses emotions into a deeper knowledge, and then goes right past understanding. Which leads to faith! And Jesus is the Son of God, I like to say he was whole Arabic and whole God. But He died on the cross for your sins, because He loved you so much. Just saying... wow!

And heads up, if it's comfortable, you betcha He will move your butt where it aint so cushioned. It is hard to run towards Him when you're so comfortable sittin down... so it makes sense.

A Hearts Adventure

    I have been writing in my journal and on 'Notes' on Facebook for a while but I really want to express my heart and mind to as many people who will listen, so thanks!

 I titled my blog "A Hearts Adventure"because I believe the most important, the most exciting, and the most dangerous adventure is of the Heart. (I do not know of anyone that would argue with me on this point, then again half of the things I dissect I have yet to discuss.) But the reason why I believe the heart's adventure is the most epic is because nothing is or can be as 'deep' as we were created to be. except God of course..(heart vs. an actual nature loving adventure..) I guess the only adventure we take part in IS of the heart anyway.

Somethings I should mention are I don't make a lot of sense a lot of the time; I often find truth because I was first wrong (thats all of us I just put my realization into words), when I write I often come to a different point towards the end of what I say, and my favorite desire is to explore more of God and more of you and in turn knowing more of myself.