What Has Happened?

Someone has to say something...
.
What has happened to us in S.C., in this area re: the runoff for the special election? A lot of people were energized and got together for the Charleston Tea Party meetings in 2009 and the ones who helped send Tim Scott to the House of Representatives. Weren't we excited when Tim Scott organized the meetings to bring all the Republican Candidates for President to the Charleston area separately so that we could view them individually and see what they really stood for? And we got out the vote to get people to vote in the Presidential election.

So, what has happened? We had 16 Republican candidates running for the House seat that was vacated by Tim Scott when he moved up to the Senate. Then, of all things we had a runoff between Mark Sanford and Curtis Bostic. Curtis Bostic is a serious Christian and has the moral ideals we all want to have in a candidate. The biggest thing is, I believe,that we could trust him. We know Mark Sanford's history- the affair but also lying to his office and the people he was supposed to be serving about where he was. He has admitted to his failures and said he was sorry, but can we trust him at this very important time? As  Christians, we forgive, but that doesn't necessarily mean that we trust again right away. I was very disappointed that Sanford won, but I was even more disappointed in the lack of enthusiasm behind the voting! I saw that only 10% of those eligible to vote, voted! This is still a critical time in our country, people, and we can't stop now. We cannot be complacent.

We need to see the big picture! Now we HAVE to back Sanford, whatever he has done, because we need a Republican in that seat from here. Maybe the Democrat can bring jobs, but will she? And she will vote on Party lines with Big business and the Unions..Don't let what DeMint, Scott, and others have done be in vain.This has been a Republican seat for a long time and we cannot let it go to a Democrat now. Our country is in real danger and we need all the help we can get. Our voices must be heard. We must get energized again. We need to go to the meetings, to help with whatever we can, and VOTE! Voting is our right and priviledge still. We cannot let our country be overrun by people that don't honor The Constitution. (The Democrats and 16 Republicans have shown us again how they don't honor our 2nd Amendment rights by voting for gun controls just today.)

Please do your part!

Desiring to be closer to God: About this thing called anger

Desiring to be closer to God: About this thing called anger

My thoughts on Valentine's Day, rewritten and reposted 2/11/2013

My thoughts on Valentine's Day.


I was thinking that we make such a big deal out of Valentine's Day. We shouldn't focus on love just one day..
For one thing, shouldn't couples treat each other with love the whole year round instead of just one day? Shouldn't they show each other love with little acts of kindness every day or lots of other days? If you love someone, you show it ALL the time. Birthdays are especially important, especially for some people. (My son doesn't think we should observe any particular day as better than another and he has a point. God gave us all days to enjoy).
Another thing is that it is hard on singles to face the big "V. Day" when they don't have a significant other. And there is all this emphasis on being "in love". When we have been rejected or left or never had love or someone died, all the emphasis on this day can be difficult. We are especially reminded of our lack on this day.
But, going deeper, as Christians, don't we know the Greatest Lover of all time? He created us to have fellowship with Him. God loved us before we were born- He chose us to be His people. Whether we accept it or not, He still chose us. Several places in the O.T. and the N.T. He shows how He wants a relationship with us. What kind of Love is this?
In Jeremiah and Psalms and others God tells us He knew us before we were born and fashioned us. He picked Abraham out of all the people at that time to have descendants like the sands at the seashore. Before him there was Noah. And Abraham's linage- still don't understand Jacob, such a scoundrel, but He wanted them to be a people set apart. And my favorite, Joseph, He picked him out to save the people from famine. And then, Moses and Joshua..etc.
This great God chose to speak to us through different means- prophets, the Word, signs, visions (or dreams), other people. He is Mighty God, Creator of the universe, yet He chose to speak to us, to love us, to have fellowship with us, to be our Father. What kind of Love is this?
 He loved the whole world He created so much, that He sent His only Son to show us, to teach us how to live, by His words and by His example. Jesus came to all men, loving , healing, reaching out, but only the humble will accept Him. And then Jesus gave His life to die for sinful man and rose again to give us new life so that we might live with Him. What kind of Love is this?
We have no condemnation in Him, once we confess and repent, the slate is wiped clean. "If God so loved the world that He gave His Son, will He not give us freely all things?" Rom. 8. Also He has said He will NEVER leave us. Those of us that have suffered rejection and people leaving us by death as well, don't ever have to worry about God leaving us. He is always ready to listen to our heartful crys and prayers. We may not hear Him answer us the way we want, or in the time we want. He also may wait to answer until we are really desparate, but He answers in His time. What kind of love is this?
 If we have God, what more should we need? I know that it can be wonderful to have "that special someone" but God's love is all consuming and there all the time. This is the kind of Love we should have our focus on. The love between people, although good, pales by comparison.
So, I just want to say that God through His Son, Jesus, is my Valentine.

Time to take a Stand

“All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” Edmund Burke


This is SO true. Some of the news says that Obama is having a war against the Catholics re: religious freedom and abortion. I am so glad the Catholics are standing up, but it should be every Christian's fight. But we of the rest of the Church are so divided because of less important things, like whether a Christian should dance, or whether or not to smoke, etc.that we can't come together on basic things like abortion and religious freedom of speech.
It is time for ALL Christians to stand together for our religious freedoms and against abortion. I, personally, think that abortion is one of the biggest issues we face. Our God made each one of us and it must hurt Him so to see little defenseless babies being killed every day. How can He bless America when it is showing no value for human life? He has said, "Woe to those who call good, evil, and evil, good". Many people don't understand, but most of the people who are for abortion just don't care.

Jesus Never Leaves Us

When you think you can't go on,


or what is the purpose of going on,


putting one foot in front of the other,


going to work, coming home,


just to get up and do it again:


when prayers don't seem to be answered,


when lfe seems to be in turmiol


and trials keep coming...


We all need to remember:


Jesus is praying for us!


Although He may seem far,


He is always with us,


He will never leave us


and we are always on His mind-


He is praying for us.


"I will never leave you, nor forsake you."

"How could I forget, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands."

Just some thoughts on homosexuality..

In response to a discussion thread re: how would Jesus respond to the homosexual?

Jesus would respond to the homosexual as He responds to all of us. He loves that person. However, He would call that person out of sinful behavior into repentance and into His Fellowship. Homosexuality begins as with every other sin, in the mind. I have met several people who were in the "homosexual lifestyle" and came out of it through repentance and turning to God, with God's help. I think that the Bible refers to homosexuality as an abomination because it is sin, not because it is worse than any other sin.

This is what the Bible says:Romans 1:26-29 (New King James Version)

26 For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. 27 Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.

28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality,[a] wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness;"

We are all tempted in some form or other and we choose to turn away from our sin, confessing it and turning to Jesus. I was involved in helping with a group of former homosexuals as an outreach to AIDS victims(there were only 2 in the group though), and heard such horror stories. I believe that these people started out very sensitive (Can't you see the artists and other creative people who are sensitive to the artistic side of things that are "homosexual")and have either been abused or rejected and have turned to this lifestyle to escape, searching for love in the wong places. But Jesus has the greatest Love and they can run to Him. One of the guys I met in that group said he would rather have the temptations to fight the thoughts and have Jesus than to not have the thoughts and not have Jesus.

By the way, I believe from those I have seen and heard from, there is no "gene for homosexuality". As a general rule, these people are sensitive as creative people are. These people as all want love and acceptance, but they turn to the wrong places for it. I have gotten to know several people who were in the homosexual lifestyle. They were either abused by men and saw it as "love" or had distant fathers- one guy was even sort of a male prostitute.

I believe that people that are in the homosexual lifestyle should be shown a better way, through Jesus and His people what love is really. And we in the Church should be showing that love. Not condoning the sin, but loving the sinner out of his sin.

Right to life for the innocents

I have become more discouraged with the things going on in our country. People have lost their perspective. As an individual I tried with other people and groups to work against the abortion laws, etc. And I feel things have taken a huge step backwards. So many people have worked actively, and behind the scenes, to protect our most innocent people and suddenly the laws have been reversed. The "choice"for birth has been given to the mother but not to the innocent baby.

What does the Bible say? Ps. 106:38 "They shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, and the land was desecrated by their blood.39 They defiled themselves by what they did; by their deeds they prostituted themselves." The"idols of Canaan" are the god of "convenience" or "money"or "irresponsibility". People in our country seem to be more into wanting to have "things," are all upset with animal cruelty, keeping up with others with their homes and clothes, whether or not they can afford them, than the life of a child.

We of all people should defend the rights of the innocent. We mourn when a baby dies shortly after it is born or a young child is taken and killed. That is death of innocents. Well, so too is the death of a child before it has left the womb. The child, at whatever state of growth, is still a child. And as a child, he/she has all the rights of any individual that happens to be outside the womb.



So many children are born so very small and survive through the skills of doctors that have learned so much how to save smaller and smaller babies. And machines are being improved so much to keep the small ones alive. The womb is the best place for the baby to grow, but if something happens and the baby is born early there are so many things available to nurture and help the innocent ones to grow that there is no excuse for killing the baby. Murder is murder no matter what age of the child.

I am trying to have hope that people in this great country will finally realize the rights of all children. After all, the mother doesn't have to raise the child- there is always adoption for people who so want to have children but can't. Adoption is such a special thing for couples who want but can't have children. They want to experience the joys of bringing up a little one. These people will take care of the babies and give them a chance to live life.

I am so glad that we have more elected officials that are pro-life, but we also need to pray and speak out when we can.

I believe that God hurts with each child that is killed- and there have been so so many now. How long do we think God will put up with this? How long will He allow His creations that cannot speak for themselves be destroyed. God is a God of Love but He is also a God of Justice.




"Jesus loves the little children"

.

What? SC (and Christians) can think?

I am from South Carolina and yes the liberal press would seemed so shocked that SC would elect a Black Congressman…

Doesn’t that sound a bit racist to you? As northerners and Liberals always assume, wow, “this must be a fluke, southerners can’t think”.
Tim Scott happens to be black but he also is a principled Conservative Christian. And that is really important to always emphasize. There are a lot of racist blacks and liberals you know. I happen to be white but also a principled Christian Conservative. I am very proud of this man- he honors God and his single parent mother and is a humble man who wants to help get our country back on track.
I see that there were only a few other black men that were elected and I am sorry about that, but I am backing Tim Scott all the way.

Christian singles' heart cry

I make it from day to day because of putting one foot in front of the other and praying God will bring me through, but sometimes everything hits my heart and mind, and it is hard to keep going...
How can the Church not see it is extremly hard sometimes for singles to keep going? I have God but sometimes I need "love with skin on it". I can decide what to do when by myself, but I AM in charge of making decisions while trying to follow what I believe God wants. It is hard to make decisions. Sometimes it is hard to see what He wants and hard to hear Him. With someone to bounce my ideas or thoughts off, like as part of my family, would be such a help. Someone to live life with- not just living with Jesus- but having a person there too. God has provided much for me but having a person here with me, that would be such a blessing. God, Himself, said, "It is not good for man to be alone."
As Christian singles, we need to do our best to encourage each other by being there for each other to help each other make it, loving and caring for each other. We need to find time- groups small or large- to spend with each other. Or to be a hand to hold to lead each other. We need to network with each other as well as the rest of the Body of Christ.

The "Tea Parties"

The Tea Party movement as so many people want to call it is ordinary citizens wanting America to return to the values that it was founded on.The name, "Tea party" was after the Boston Tea Party- no taxation without representation, freedom, smaller govenment, not giving handouts to people who can work, ordinary people working for an honest wage.Do you guys remember your history? Perhaps some Mormons have have krept in but they are not the basis for this movement, they have nothing to do with the reasons for this movement. And remember when the Libs thought we were nothing,we weren't worth the time of day? Well, now they say we are some evil force? Good grief-anything to turn our country into a gov't run , gov't controlled country. That's not what our forefathers wanted. The Liberals are using back room deals, etc. Now, I have read an article that the Liberals want to place some people in the meetings to incite violence and of course, blame it on the Tea Party people, us ordinary citizens. When things were said that should not have been, they were individual people that had no say in the majority of the people. And the leaders or Congressmen have denouced the outbursts. These people from the Tea Party only want honest, smaller gov't; we do not want violence. It is the RIGHT of the people for peaceful assembly.

Let freedom reign!

The Church is not meeting single adult's needs

I am a single adult and I believe that the Church is falling down in meeting single adults' needs. It is true that we want to keep marriages together and most people that go to any church are married. But some of the reasons some singles don't go to church at all is because they have not received the care and love that a church body should give. They find they can receive more friendships from people at work or at secular things, like even a bar. Does the Church really want to be known that they can't be as friendly as secular people?


I have been to several different churches and right now am involved with one church quite a bit and have seen it in all but one of the churches, the lack of ministering to singles. There is no ministering to the single's needs per se. If someone in church finds out I am single, they immediately start talking about their husband or wife or the wife comes over or the husband moves away...


We have a single's group but at first it was all about how to avoid sin, now it brings married people into the group. We have small groups during the week which has singles and marrieds in them and that's fine, but why mess up the single's group with married people?And the emphasis is on outreach.


It is good for singles to reach out to others but sometimes people need healing within themselves first. Some singles are really hurting inside and need people that understand how they feel and can minister Jesus' love to them. As single we can feel very lonely at times and need just a phone call or a "come go with me to such and such..." or even, heaven forbid, "Would you like to come over for dinner?" We don't need to be treated as second class Christians.


I have written a book to encourage single people that God is still there even when you can't feel or see Him,(The Light in our Darkness) and have written several articles or blogs or whatever you want to call them, to share encouragement and have let the head of the Single's group -first one, then the other, know about them that I could even share with the group and I have gotten nowhere. There is an article just this month in the "Pentacostal Evangel"(pe@ag.org)about this very thing. This happens in all denominations, I am not just picking on AG churchs but we, as the Body of Christ, need to change things.

Hope

Hope


I haven't added another blog to all of these since for a while and yet people keep coming by and reading either the last one, or others- so many have come- I wish you would add comments.

Even so I think it is because we ARE going through hard times, lots of us, and we need reassurance and hope from somewhere.

Only God has the true hope that we need. Only He cares more for us than we could imagine.

It is hard as I have said to have hope when we look around us- the state of our country, people losing jobs and the lack of available jobs, people losing houses, prices going up and pay checks-if any- going down or staying the same. We loose loved ones or they are far away, family strains because of the times, even with jobs, not able to pay for proper healthcare, murders going up... Also, with me and my other single friends, we still want someone to be with, just to love us for who we are, and we are still single.

So, where is the Hope? Only God gives us that hope. Only He loves us whatever we do or don't do. Only He never leaves us or turns His back on us. He is ever wanting us to seek Him out, waiting for us to turn to Him, or giving us a tap saying, "I'm still here." People are saying that we are in the last days, but God said He would be with us, until the end of the world. He promises never to leave us.

In an ealier blog I left a video about "laminin" the substance in our bodies that holds all our ligaments together. It is in the shape of a cross! Our very bodies are held together by the power of God!

Hope is a rariety but God grants it if we look to Him, seek after Him, He grants it, saying He will never leave us.

Maybe it's time for a "wake up call"?

No one seems to be commenting on my previous post, probably because the people who agree with me seem to think that , "Of course, that's what we want" and think it was too simplistic or too clear and didn't feel the need to comment.

It IS simplistic and to the point. Why is it that the President and other people in Washington can't see that? This is a baby human, not an animal, and was given the right to life by our Creator, Who formed this baby in the womb, as well as the Constitution. I get discouraged when I see all the mighty efforts of "right to life" people overridden by the stroke of a pen. But we need to keep spreading the word and standing up for those who cannot speak. But most importantly we need to pray more and more.

I believe that the biggest reason our country is in the shape it is in is because most people here have left God. I don't mean any specific church but God, Himself. Taking prayer out of schools, not listening to those who are true to the Word, pastors or other people, the decay of morals through people saying they can decide for themselves what is wrong or right. This goes for those who have high powered jobs including Cogressmen and others in Government, and have stolen from the rest of us, as well as the people on the streets who have all decided that drugs, sex outside marriage, single people as well as those having affairs, etc. are ok unless they get caught. And the value of human life has gone down, partially due to abortion which has devalued human life. This can be seen in the stark increase in murders.

In Rev 6:9-10: "The souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. 10They called out in a loud voice, "How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?" I believe that time is coming. In Isaiah 5:20 "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter."

It is time to PRAY Church like we never have before!

What about "right to life" for innocents?

I have become more discouraged with the things going on in our country. People have lost their perspective. As an individual I tried with other people and groups to work against the abortion laws, etc. And I feel things have taken a huge step backwards. So many people have worked actively, and behind the scenes, to protect our most innocent people and suddenly the laws have been reversed. The "choice"for birth has been given to the mother but not to the innocent baby.

What does the Bible say? Ps. 106:38 "They shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, and the land was desecrated by their blood.39 They defiled themselves by what they did; by their deeds they prostituted themselves." The"idols of Canaan" are the god of "connivance" or "money"or "irresponsibility". People in our country seem to be more into wanting to have "things," are all upset with animal cruelty, keeping up with others with their homes and clothes, whether or not they can afford them, than the life of a child.

We of all people should defend the rights of the innocent. We mourn when a baby dies shortly after it is born or a young child is taken and killed. That is death of innocents. Well, so too is the death of a child before it has left the womb. The child, at whatever state of growth, is still a child. And as a child, he/she has all the rights of any individual that happens to be outside the womb.

So many children are born so very small and survive through the skills of doctors that have learned so much how to save smaller and smaller babies. And machines are being improved so much to keep the small ones alive. The womb is the best place for the baby to grow, but if something happens and the baby is born early there are so many things available to nurture and help the innocent ones to grow that there is no excuse for killing the baby. Murder is murder no matter what age of the child.

I am trying to have hope that people in this great country will finally realize the rights of all children. After all, the mother doesn't have to raise the child- there is always adoption for people who so want to have children but can't. Adoption is such a special thing for couples who want but can't have children. They want to experience the joys of bringing up a little one. These people will take care of the babies and give them a chance to live life.

There is so much more that can be added to this subject. I will be getting back to it.

Please leave comments too.

When all else seems gone, there is God...

I have been learning so much from God recently. I realized that I don't have close people to necessarily help me in decisions, but... As I was thinking about this the thought came, "It's just You and me God." In my spirit God was encouraging me that, "That's where I want it to be." Whether I have close friends or a future husband, I have God, and what more do I need?

Fear is such a damaging emotion. I have had fears all my life. They are so ingranded in me that many times I don't see that it is fear. But I am learning to recognize fear and that it is NOT normal.

Maybe a lot of the things I have gone through have been God teaching me that I CAN get through them with His power and His prescence. I have learned that He is there to guide me through things and be with me to step out and do new things (such as go to Hong Kong). When I pray and put it all out there, even if I don't feel Him, I can make decisions to the best of my ability knowing that He is there. For instance I just had to decide on a new job and now I have it! I believe it was His will because I asked Him to close doors if it wasn't right.

And people that have an "annointing" have it from God- it is not about them, but about God. So, there is no respector of persons. We are all on the same level and noone is better than any other. Pastors are only serving a role just as anyone else in the church. Because it is not about them-or us- it is about God and where He wants someone to function. He loves each of us the same, noone is better or worse.

I have had fears and worries and probably still will when I don't keep my focus on God, but I am growing. As in Psalm 27,The Lord is the light and my salvation of whom shall I be afraid?

This is a big breakthrough for me. To begin to break the bonds of fear...what a joy!

My book!

I am so excited! The book I have written has been published! I wanted to write a book to give encouragement to people going through divorce, single-parenting, or any hard time including having to deal with things such as fear and depression. The answer is always the Light: Jesus!

Here is the link where you can check out about buying it: Book Details