My Thought of the Day

It's been a really long time since I posted... sorry about that!

Recently I've been reading through the book of Genesis and God has just been showing me so many things that I'd never seen before. That's one of the things I love about the scriptures, it doesn't matter how many times I read something, there's always another level of revelation. I could read the Bible a million times through and find something new each time!

One thing that kind of blew my mind a bit was the story of Adam and Eve. I know we've all read it and know it forwards and backwards, but reading it again this last time I began to think about the reasons behind Eve's decision to eat the fruit. She had everything going for her, a great husband, beautiful home, all of her needs provided for and let's not forget she was drop dead gorgeous and never going to age or lose her girlish figure. Who wouldn't want that? On top of all that she had an intimate relationship with God who came down daily to walk and talk with her. She had quite the life! Yet, something compelled her to eat of the fruit of the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Satan came to her as a serpent and knew her weakness. He knew exactly what to target in her in order to cause her to fall into sin. The serpent planted a seed of doubt in Eve's mind. He implied that God was holding something good back from her, something that was for her benefit, that would make her like God Himself. And so Eve ate the fruit and gave it to her husband and he ate the fruit too. Their eyes were opened and they realized they were naked and they knew shame for the very first time. See, Satan knew that if he could cause that doubt in Eve's mind, that thought that what he was offering was better than what God had then he could get Eve to sin. Eve didn't recognize that what he was offering was only half truth. He told her she wouldn't die from eating the fruit, yet we know that the moment she ate it death entered the world. Her body began to die in that moment; her physical body, her emotional body, and her spiritual body. Eve thought God was withholding something good from her when in reality He with keeping her from death. Now here's the kicker, we're exactly the same way. Satan uses the same tricks that worked for him then to get to us now. We fall for it hook, line, and sinker. He gets us to think the things that God has told us not to touch are good for us, that God is holding something back. But the reality of the situation is this, God knows what is good for us and what will bring death. He makes it clear in His word and it's not because He wants to be a dictator or be mean, but because He, as our creator, knows what's best for us. We've all fallen into this trap, thinking we know better than God because surely this "thing" is for our good. But God knows so much better than we do, and He's only looking out for us. Many times when we fall into sin we also experience that "shame" that Adam and Eve did. Their response is the same as ours, to hide from God. But the best thing we can do when we fall is to allow God Almighty to come in, see the mess we've made, clean us up, and put us right back on our feet. Satan uses that shame to try and separate us from God, but God doesn't hold our sins against us. When we repent and ask for forgiveness He casts them as far as the east is from the west. Sitting here writing this I'm amazed by the goodness of God and so incredibly thankful that Jesus took my punishment for my sins making a way for me to come to the Father. I hope and pray that the insight God gave me helps you as it's helped me!

Today's Promise From God

When your faith is shaky ...

The Sovereign Lord is my strength! He makes me as surefooted as a deer, able to tread upon the heights.
Habakkuk 3:19

Today's Promise From God

When it seems impossible to follow God's commands...

Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God's grace.
Romans 6:14

Forgiveness

Forgiveness is arguably the most difficult feeling to genuinely express in a necessary situation. For example, you have probably been angry in your lifetime at ridiculous situations and in very serious situations. In the moment your anger flared, could you not have replaced it with forgiveness to resolve the situation? Easier said than done, I'm sure we can agree, but the point is that it can be done.

Take this scene from the more recent adaptation of Little Women starring Susan Sarandon and Winona Ryder.

http://youtu.be/u3CGG-6alBE (unable to embed due to owner's disabling)

Jo's little sister, Amy, burns her beloved manuscript out of jealousy that Jo was able to go out while restricting Amy and sentencing her to an evening of homework. Jo's anger seems relatively understandable, maybe slightly extreme, but understandable at first glance.

Think, though, was her anger worth it? This is not to say one should not experience upset and that we should all be hunky dory throughout ever instance in our lives, but must we react with angry words and actions in our anger? The reality is, Amy burned a pile of papers. Granted, the papers had Jo's hard work that took a great deal of time and effort but it was a material item she was deeply attached to and nothing more. I am one to speak, I have had a few times in my life where my computer hard drive was done for and I thought I had lost my personal photos, the most important material thing I have. I literally had meltdowns with each loss (and they were recovered which is another story for another day!) and looking back I feel a little selfish.

Where does forgiveness play into this?

Forgiveness is not only about saying, "Well, that's alright so long as your sorry." It's about recognizing that when something is the matter, it just is and if there's something that can be done to fix the situation well then so be it but otherwise there is no good coming from anger. Anger will only hurt others. And so what? The wrongdoer deserves to feel hurt, no? Chances are they probably already do and if they are malicious than let God be their judge.

In the resolution of what Amy did, Jo was able to forgive her. She did come to the realization that it wasn't a true loss. A true loss would be losing her mother, her father, her sister. In the end, she wrote a book that was the complete opposite of what was burned. The only thing that could have made the situation better was Jo thinking about this and recognizing this before lashing out. I would like to imagine that if Amy had been 3 years old, Jo would have displayed a great deal of patience in the same scenario, no matter how upset she felt inside.

Forgiveness is the answer. Grudges stay with you and weigh you down. Forgiveness can release any bitterness you hold inside. There are tough experiences in life such as the murder of a child. Often, spectators and the loved ones of the victim are eager to see the predator be sentenced to death. If that is the fate of someone, there is no reversing the law and extreme as this may sound, God can help you achieve feelings of forgiveness to such a lost soul, relieving the victim's loved ones of a life of anger and hate and bitterness within. Corrie ten Boom is a perfect example. I have written about her work, The Hiding Place, and her experiences during the Holocaust. She refers to a meeting with a Nazi where she begged God to give her strength to shake hands with this person who murdered her sister, her neighbors, so many people and He did. She describes their shaking hands as such a moving moment because God was with there, protecting her from a life of anger. She was able to forgive. 

Goals and Mrs. Dalloway

I feel so redundant saying this, but yes, I have been terrible and keeping up with my blogs. Life shouldn't get in the way of something you love and are passionate about.  It is important to remind yourself of what is important in life and to make sure you fulfill your life with those things on a daily basis. I need to make a point of writing on my blogs the moment I put my little one to sleep if I haven't already written for the day!

Back to business - I wanted to discuss the film Mrs. Dalloway, based on the book by Virginia Woolf. I am not here to criticize the book, the film or the author at all but to give commentary on one small (literally a minute or two of screen time) scene from the film with Mrs. Dalloway, her daughter and a family friend. Her daughter mentions leaving with the friend due to an interest in converting to Christianity. Mrs. Dalloway remarks that religious fanatics are converting everyone.

The whole of the scene is that Mrs. Dalloway ends up making her daughter feel guilt and disappointment for even thinking of converting. I find this extremely hypocritical. Just as Mrs. Dalloway suggests that Christians are out to convert everyone, is she not out to convert others against Christianity??? Her daughter does not seem to be a wreck, or disillusioned, nor did she seem to express immediate need to become Christian. My understanding was that she had an interest in learning more about Christianity. Whether or not you believe something, a wonderful first step is educating yourself on any subject. Discouraging anyone from learning while pitting them against that same subject has a lot to do with major problems in the world.

Wars are fought and children are born into families that oppose this country or that country as a result, without the child even being old enough to know what the war was about or why they hate any particular country! I am not sure what the comparison is from the book to the film for that scene but am eagerly looking to borrow Mrs. Dalloway from the library to compare. It is suggested that Mrs. Dalloway is gay and it is not disclosed as to whether this is her reason for being against Christianity but I  believe that is the implication and I find it rather small minded, as well.

There is a large misconception that Christianity means you're preppy, you're perfect, you don't swear, you don't do wrong, you never do anything illegal, you are not gay, you have never been convicted, I could go on but I'm sure you get the point. We forget that Christians, no matter what their faults, strive to be like Jesus each day of their lives. If you really blow it at 2pm on a Friday, then at 2:01pm on that same day you pray for forgiveness and continue to be like Christ without ever giving up. We are human and many of us have experienced wrong doing but that does not mean you are unaccepted. When you open your heart to God, when you trust him, when you serve him and when you build your relationship with him, He is there for you without a doubt.

Maybe you are reading this and thinking, "Man, she's not going to convince me. This is such bullshit. *laughs* Have fun in la-la land!!" You have every right to think, or say that. You may not want to accept it but if you feel that way God is still God, he still loves you and I will still pray for you. When a Christian discusses their faith, they are not out to convince or trick anyone. I am sharing my experience and thoughts with you and my only hope is that you listen. Remember, because you have one view, as Mrs. Dalloway did, you do not have to judge others for their attempts at educating themselves. The most hypocritical part about Mrs. Dalloway's situation is that her story is one of great tragedy. She was gay and knew better than anyone what it was to be judged, so why should she impose judgement on her own daughter?

A Christian giving testimony is a free lesson in what God can provide. Many people have a hard time listening to Christian testimony, perhaps because they feel like they are being trapped and tricked into believing. That feeling is fear, fear of believing in something you can't fully explain, fear of trusting something you can't see, hear or touch the way you can another person, fear of opening your mind. That's right, you are not shutting down and "following the crowd" by accepting our Father! You know why?! Because accepting God has nothing to do with "but everyone's doing that" or "this is 2011!" I have never felt more sure of myself or more at ease than the day I became Christian.

I recently read Maryland by Loree Lough and in it there's a discussion between two characters, one a believer, one not. The non-believer suggests that science provides logical answers, but the believer reminds him that science  is playing it safe because science does not allow you to believe the impossible.

Believe the impossible. What a gift.