I'm quite tired of hearing the phrase "Why would God let ______ happen?!" Why would God let there be poverty? Why would God not give us money for Christmas gifts? Why would God deprive our children of earthly things? Why would God give us this weather? Why would God do this, that and the other thing?!
Let me ask you this: Why would God bless us so much?? Here in Canada, we are incredibly blessed. We are spoiled. God gives us nice houses, cars, a healthy family, pets, nice things, freedom, He gave us EVERYTHING! God is good. He knows that if we get that new iPhone, we probably won't have as much time for Him. We'll put off our time with Him to play with our new toy, that will probably break within a year. God is forever. He knows what we do.
I've had people tell me that the people in Africa are just poor to get pity. They could come out of it if they wanted to. First off, that is not true. They are, as far as I'm concerned, the hardest workers in the world yet some of them still live off of less than a dollar a day. Is it fair? No. Did God make this happen? Yes. So, why? Why would he make those people suffer? That's the question we often ask. I am jealous of the people in Africa living below the poverty line. God knows what He's doing guys! He didn't make a mistake. He never makes mistakes. So why do we question Him? The people in Africa have an amazing bond, they are some of the strongest people I have ever heard of, they depend on Jesus Christ for everything in their lives. They're lucky! The problem is, as humans, we often just look at the money aspect of things. Money is earthly. I'm a teenager, of course I want money! I love being able to get new clothes, I love being able to go out with my friends, I love being able to spoil myself. And that's something that I have to work on, I recognize that. I just hate hearing, "Why would God do this to me?" Yes, I've said it before. I still don't know why some of the things in my life happened, but they made me who I am today, and I would not do anything in my past differently. Not one thing.
Now, I'm going to be the most predictable person on the face of the earth, because I am going to talk about New Years. I can't get over how fast 2010 went by. I remember the speaker in church talking about how cool Twenty-ten sounds like it was yesterday. This year has been crazy. In March I put on my first bake sale and we raised $700 for Haiti. I went to YC Manitoba for the first time in April. Amazing, that's all I can say. Definitely planted a big seed! I would suggest it to everyone!! In May I turned 15. On my birthday, my best friend dragged me out of my house, we almost got killed (so much fun!) and we went to the beach and took pictures. All I can say is I am blessed. In June I put on another bake sale for a blind kid in my town, we raised $900 and put very big smiles on that family's faces! In July I went to a Leadership Development Program at Winkler Bible Camp and made some life long friends and became so much closer with God. I also travelled out of the province for the first time with my LDP group, one of the most special experiences I've had. I changed for the good. Through July to August I worked 6 weeks plus 2 weeks of LDP at WBC and had the time of my life! Made so many good friends and I now have a big sister who I love to death! In September I started grade 10, yet again realizing how young I feel. In November Morden had a concert by The Letter Black and Seventh Day Slumber for a YC Manitoba Rally. It was an amazing night, and one of the best nights of my life. Then a week later I went on a youth retreat to Camp Arnes and got baptised in the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues for the first time. I will never forget that experience. December rolled around and just last night I had an LDP reunion! We had a blast, we watched Star Wars, played Apples to Apples and Quelf, played in the snow, and talked for hours. Obviously, we did not get much sleep, but it was so worth it. I really believe that if you have God in any kind of relationship, whether it be friendship or a dating relationship, it'll work out. You'll have that person for a long, long time. And here we are. With a couple minutes left of 2010. It was gone in the blink of an eye.
I think that the big deal with a new year is the chance to start over. I'm going to start over. I'm going to be me. I don't want to care what people think about me anymore. I want to have confidence. I want to be comfortable in my own skin. But I want that confidence to come from God. That is my prayer request to you guys. Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers. I love you guys, and I know you have a great year ahead of you! God is good.
God bless,
Ariel
December 31, 2010
December 28, 2010
You Are More
I feel the need to post this. My whole life, I've had people trying to change me. I remember in grade 3 or 4, my friends would take me out to the play ground, say they needed to talk to me, tell me what I was doing that they didn't like, and tell me to either change it or we wouldn't be friends anymore. I don't remember a lot of my childhood. The other day, I got the shock of finding out I have a half sister. After 15 years of being alive, and I only find out now. She's a year older than me. I went through every single emotion possible in the 24 hours following. It was a crazy time, and I still can't wrap my mind around it, but I'm very excited. I met her when I was three, she was four, I don't remember that. I don't remember much from before I was 12, grade 7. There were some very traumatic things that happened in that year, and that's why I don't remember much before it. Bits and pieces, yes, but I don't have a lot of memories from back then. Is that normal? I have no idea what normal is anymore.
I am done with being changed. There is one person and one person only who I'm willing to change for, and that is my Daddy in heaven. I know that he does want me to change to be more like his son, Jesus is our role model. But I know that he loves me no matter what. I love that.
I do not like meat. This is something that people have been bugging me about the past year. Everyone has different tastes. I realize that God made animals for us to eat, I respect that, I'm not refusing to eat them because of some religious rule or anything, I'm refusing to eat them because I don't like the taste or texture of them. Completely different than not respecting that God made these for us to eat. So, I would appreciate if everyone would shut up and stop harassing me to eat meat, respect my wishes.
I hate it when people talk about me behind my back, so stop it. Especially when I can hear you. It's stupid, really, if you can say it behind my back, you can say it to my face. I'm tired of people mistreating me. Yes, I have gossiped before. I'm not perfect in any way. I know that. But I'm trying really hard to stop, I probably have and will slip up at times, but I'm only human. No child of the King deserves to be treated in that way.
I'm tired of being compared to people. I have a friend who seems to be the perfect daughter. She cooks supper every night for her family and loves it, she makes lunch for her brother every day, she would rather stay at home and watch a movie with her mom than go out with friends. I'm an entirely different person. People are going to have to start accepting me for me, and not comparing me to others. It's stupid, because there are many people I could never measure up to, because I'm not them, I don't have the same mind set as them, I wasn't raised the same way, I don't have the same likes and dislikes, I don't have the same opinions. I'm a unique person, and I love that.
I love helping people. People are my passion. Hang out with me long enough and you'll learn that. I love organizing fundraisers. The earthquake in Haiti got the ball rolling. God makes good come out of everything. If that hadn't happened, I might have never figured out that passion. Haiti helped me find out what I may want to do for the rest of my life. I care about and love the people in Haiti very much, I love the Red Cross for what they do in helping everyone in every situation. I care about the people in my community. I did a fundraiser for a boy in town who's going blind, they have a big family, and they needed some help financially. I was SO happy that they asked me to help! It was fun, and I loved seeing the pure joy on their faces from the results. I don't need my name or face in the paper, that's all I need, those looks of joy. I'm not telling you this to get praise from you or for you to think I'm a good person or whatever, I'm telling you this because this is who I am. I love helping people. I'll help in whatever way I can. Praise be to God, hallelujah!
I love to write! Quite obviously. I love putting my feelings out here, I love being heard, I love my readers! It makes me so happy to see people from all around the world reading what I have to say. This is definitely a gift from God, no doubt about it!
Canada 440
United States 102
United Kingdom 11
New Zealand 7
Germany 2
Denmark 2
Slovenia 2
Serbia 1
Russia 1
Singapore 1
These are the places and the amount of people from each place that have read my blog. PRAISE GOD! This is a crazy amount of countries and a crazy amount of people. Way beyond my wildest dreams! So thank YOU guys, for reading and listening to me rant on and on. My favorite thing is to get emails about how much people liked one of my posts, that's what keeps me going. Not the fact that all these people are reading, but the fact that people are getting something out of it. It's truly amazing, you guys. I love you all.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4NTHkJ27nQ&feature=fvst <---watch this video. Don't just listen to the song, but watch the video. It describes my feelings so perfectly right now, and it brought tears to my eyes. I love you Jenny, and thank you for sending this to me!
Blessings,
Ariel
I am done with being changed. There is one person and one person only who I'm willing to change for, and that is my Daddy in heaven. I know that he does want me to change to be more like his son, Jesus is our role model. But I know that he loves me no matter what. I love that.
I do not like meat. This is something that people have been bugging me about the past year. Everyone has different tastes. I realize that God made animals for us to eat, I respect that, I'm not refusing to eat them because of some religious rule or anything, I'm refusing to eat them because I don't like the taste or texture of them. Completely different than not respecting that God made these for us to eat. So, I would appreciate if everyone would shut up and stop harassing me to eat meat, respect my wishes.
I hate it when people talk about me behind my back, so stop it. Especially when I can hear you. It's stupid, really, if you can say it behind my back, you can say it to my face. I'm tired of people mistreating me. Yes, I have gossiped before. I'm not perfect in any way. I know that. But I'm trying really hard to stop, I probably have and will slip up at times, but I'm only human. No child of the King deserves to be treated in that way.
I'm tired of being compared to people. I have a friend who seems to be the perfect daughter. She cooks supper every night for her family and loves it, she makes lunch for her brother every day, she would rather stay at home and watch a movie with her mom than go out with friends. I'm an entirely different person. People are going to have to start accepting me for me, and not comparing me to others. It's stupid, because there are many people I could never measure up to, because I'm not them, I don't have the same mind set as them, I wasn't raised the same way, I don't have the same likes and dislikes, I don't have the same opinions. I'm a unique person, and I love that.
I love helping people. People are my passion. Hang out with me long enough and you'll learn that. I love organizing fundraisers. The earthquake in Haiti got the ball rolling. God makes good come out of everything. If that hadn't happened, I might have never figured out that passion. Haiti helped me find out what I may want to do for the rest of my life. I care about and love the people in Haiti very much, I love the Red Cross for what they do in helping everyone in every situation. I care about the people in my community. I did a fundraiser for a boy in town who's going blind, they have a big family, and they needed some help financially. I was SO happy that they asked me to help! It was fun, and I loved seeing the pure joy on their faces from the results. I don't need my name or face in the paper, that's all I need, those looks of joy. I'm not telling you this to get praise from you or for you to think I'm a good person or whatever, I'm telling you this because this is who I am. I love helping people. I'll help in whatever way I can. Praise be to God, hallelujah!
I love to write! Quite obviously. I love putting my feelings out here, I love being heard, I love my readers! It makes me so happy to see people from all around the world reading what I have to say. This is definitely a gift from God, no doubt about it!
Canada 440
United States 102
United Kingdom 11
New Zealand 7
Germany 2
Denmark 2
Slovenia 2
Serbia 1
Russia 1
Singapore 1
These are the places and the amount of people from each place that have read my blog. PRAISE GOD! This is a crazy amount of countries and a crazy amount of people. Way beyond my wildest dreams! So thank YOU guys, for reading and listening to me rant on and on. My favorite thing is to get emails about how much people liked one of my posts, that's what keeps me going. Not the fact that all these people are reading, but the fact that people are getting something out of it. It's truly amazing, you guys. I love you all.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4NTHkJ27nQ&feature=fvst <---watch this video. Don't just listen to the song, but watch the video. It describes my feelings so perfectly right now, and it brought tears to my eyes. I love you Jenny, and thank you for sending this to me!
Blessings,
Ariel
December 25, 2010
Scrooge
I've never particularly liked holidays. Actually, that's wrong, I've always told myself that I liked holidays. I always told myself that the next one would be better. I always told myself that it was better than I was making it out to be, but I was wrong. I've completely given up on holidays. Thanksgiving, Valentines day, even Christmas. Actually, especially Christmas.
It's not that I don't love God, OF COURSE I love God! Who doesn't?! (Don't answer that.) I love that after so many years ( I have no idea how many) of Jesus dying we still celebrate his birthday. Do you celebrate your great grandma Edna's birthday after she's been dead for only one year?? Probably not. But it's just incredible that after all these years, we still celebrate. But the thing is, he did die, but he's still alive! He rose from the dead after 3 days, and if you remember correctly, he did not die again. He was taken up into heaven, ALIVE!! So that's the difference, we are celebrating Jesus' birthday, a man who is not on this earth anymore, but is not dead. Incredible.
The thing that I don't like about Christmas is everything else. I love celebrating Jesus birthday. But people have put something into my head that just irritates me. Whenever I would mention Christmas, CHRISTmas, and Jesus birthday and everything, many people felt the need to correct me and say, "Jesus birthday is actually in the summer, we just celebrate it in December." Yes, I know this, yes, at this moment, I do not care. If we celebrate his birthday now, then let us! Let us have our joy and not have to think, "oh, well it's really not his birthday." Because that's what drives me insane, that little stupid phrase runs through my mind every time I see "Happy birthday Jesus" on facebook. And it makes me want to punch myself. I can't tell you the reason we celebrate Christmas now instead of in the summer, but I'm sure there's a reason for it, and I'm sure that Jesus is excited that so many people still celebrate his birthday and acknowledge him after all these years. I'm sure it makes him so happy, dates don't matter.
Another thing, presents. I hate that everyone gets presents on the same day. Why? Because it makes people feel so small compared to others. Like ants. "New ipod touch!" "New laptop!" New this, new that, new $500 whatever. I want to be happy with my gifts, but we are so spoiled here in Canada. Lots of times I wish that I was born in Africa so I would have no choice but to depend on the Lord, to need him. The poor are truly blessed. Of course I want a new ipod touch! Yes, I am selfish. Yes, I am spoiled. Yes, there are people more spoiled and more selfish than I am, but in the big picture, I am those things, and that needs to change. I don't want to be selfish. Jesus wasn't selfish. I don't want to be spoiled. Jesus was the King of kings, yet he walked around in the desert and went without food for days. I want to be like him.
Family stresses me out. Anyone who knows me knows that. My own family knows that. Yes, I love them, but they drive me bonkers. Really. I like being by myself. I like hiding up in my room for hours and not having to be with anyone. Come to think of it, that's why I like the bathroom so much. Everyone leaves me alone in there! No one even tries to talk to me when I'm in the shower, and that's when I can really talk to God. Because it's just me and him, no one else.
Kay, guys, I'm really not a scrooge. In ways, I guess I am, but I love Christmas for the reasons that I should. I don't want to be so spoiled that I become shallow. Of course I want all those nice, expensive things, but if I do get them, I might not have enough time for God, and that scares me. I hope all of you had an amazing Christmas, filled with laughter and family and joy and good food and Jesus!
Blessings,
Ariel
It's not that I don't love God, OF COURSE I love God! Who doesn't?! (Don't answer that.) I love that after so many years ( I have no idea how many) of Jesus dying we still celebrate his birthday. Do you celebrate your great grandma Edna's birthday after she's been dead for only one year?? Probably not. But it's just incredible that after all these years, we still celebrate. But the thing is, he did die, but he's still alive! He rose from the dead after 3 days, and if you remember correctly, he did not die again. He was taken up into heaven, ALIVE!! So that's the difference, we are celebrating Jesus' birthday, a man who is not on this earth anymore, but is not dead. Incredible.
The thing that I don't like about Christmas is everything else. I love celebrating Jesus birthday. But people have put something into my head that just irritates me. Whenever I would mention Christmas, CHRISTmas, and Jesus birthday and everything, many people felt the need to correct me and say, "Jesus birthday is actually in the summer, we just celebrate it in December." Yes, I know this, yes, at this moment, I do not care. If we celebrate his birthday now, then let us! Let us have our joy and not have to think, "oh, well it's really not his birthday." Because that's what drives me insane, that little stupid phrase runs through my mind every time I see "Happy birthday Jesus" on facebook. And it makes me want to punch myself. I can't tell you the reason we celebrate Christmas now instead of in the summer, but I'm sure there's a reason for it, and I'm sure that Jesus is excited that so many people still celebrate his birthday and acknowledge him after all these years. I'm sure it makes him so happy, dates don't matter.
Another thing, presents. I hate that everyone gets presents on the same day. Why? Because it makes people feel so small compared to others. Like ants. "New ipod touch!" "New laptop!" New this, new that, new $500 whatever. I want to be happy with my gifts, but we are so spoiled here in Canada. Lots of times I wish that I was born in Africa so I would have no choice but to depend on the Lord, to need him. The poor are truly blessed. Of course I want a new ipod touch! Yes, I am selfish. Yes, I am spoiled. Yes, there are people more spoiled and more selfish than I am, but in the big picture, I am those things, and that needs to change. I don't want to be selfish. Jesus wasn't selfish. I don't want to be spoiled. Jesus was the King of kings, yet he walked around in the desert and went without food for days. I want to be like him.
Family stresses me out. Anyone who knows me knows that. My own family knows that. Yes, I love them, but they drive me bonkers. Really. I like being by myself. I like hiding up in my room for hours and not having to be with anyone. Come to think of it, that's why I like the bathroom so much. Everyone leaves me alone in there! No one even tries to talk to me when I'm in the shower, and that's when I can really talk to God. Because it's just me and him, no one else.
Kay, guys, I'm really not a scrooge. In ways, I guess I am, but I love Christmas for the reasons that I should. I don't want to be so spoiled that I become shallow. Of course I want all those nice, expensive things, but if I do get them, I might not have enough time for God, and that scares me. I hope all of you had an amazing Christmas, filled with laughter and family and joy and good food and Jesus!
Blessings,
Ariel
December 22, 2010
Breathe Today
You can only move as fast as who's in front of you
And if you assume, just like them, what good will it do?
So find out for yourself, so your ignorance will stop bleeding through
You can breathe today
So many lies swirling all around you
You're suffocating
The empty shape in you steals your breath
You're suffocating
Logic forces me to believe in this and I have learned to see
And I can only say what I've seen and heard and only you can choose
And every choice you make will affect you, search your own self
You can breathe today
So many lies swirling all around you
You're suffocating
The empty shape in you steals your breath
You're suffocating
So many lies swirling all around you
You're suffocating
The empty shape in you steals your breath
You're suffocating
BREATHE
Big enough to fill the void that inside of you
It's just a breath away
So many lies swirling all around you
You're suffocating
The empty shape in you steals your breath
You're suffocating
So many lies swirling all around you
You're suffocating
The empty shape in you steals your breath
BREATHE
So many lies swirling all around you
You're suffocating
BREATHE
The empty shape in you
Breathe today!
This song is Breathe Today by Flyleaf. Something I've always loved about this band is the raw emotion in their songs. How they don't sugar coat anything. In their song Red Sam they say, "Here I stand, empty hands, wishing my wrists were bleeding, to stop the pain from the beatings, there you stood, holding me, waiting for me to notice you". They make themselves very vulnerable, but that's why people love this band. Because they can relate. The lead singer, Lacey Mosley, has gone through a stage in her life where she did cut herself and she was suicidal. The day she was going to kill herself, her grandma made her go to church. She said that before, she was an atheist, her life mission was to make people see how stupid it was to believe in God. At church, the preacher started talking about what seemed to be exactly Lacey's life. Then he said, "There's a suicidal spirit in the room, please come up here and let us pray with you." She knew he was talking about her, but she didn't go up there. After the service, the preacher came up to her and said, "The Lord wants you to know that even though you’ve never known an earthly father, he will be a better Father to you than any earthly father could ever be.” This man could have never known that she didn't know her father, she thought it was just a coincidence considering she had purple hair and wore a rock t-shirt. He asked to pray for her, and while they were praying, she felt God's presence in such a powerful way, she felt all the sin in her, she knew that it would have been completely the right choice for God to turn her away, but instead she just felt his love. Isn't that incredible? God wanted her on this earth for a reason. Someone who never believed in this God, who was going to kill themselves, and because one person who loved Him forced her to go to church, her life was saved. She sings about God and his amazing love, she prays with and for her audiences, God is using her, 100%.
I think this song has the coolest lyrics. I had never really thought about the meaning before, but I wanted to dissect this song for you, because I think it has such an incredible meaning!
"You can only move as fast as who's in front of you
And if you assume just like them what good will it do?
So find out for yourself, so your ignorance will stop bleeding through"
They're talking about your friends. Your friends have such a big influence on who you are, you can only grow so much without them getting involved. If you have really spiritual friends who are on fire for God, chances are, you'll be on fire for him too, but if your friends are drug addicts and swear a lot, you might fall into that trap. Now, I'm not saying that you shouldn't be friends with them, come on, Jesus hung out with the prostitutes and the drunks, he loved everyone, of course we should do the same. I'm just saying, that you also need to surround yourself with people who allow you to and want you to grow. If you think about everything in the same way as them, basically, if you share a brain, how will that help you or anyone? You need to be yourself. You need to be who God wants you to be, not what people want you to be! You need to explore, you need to be YOU, because at the end of the day, it's not other people who matter, right? Ignorance is not bliss.
"You can breathe today...
So many lies swirling all around you
You're suffocating
The empty shape in you steals your breath
You're suffocating"
I feel like they're saying that Satan fills your head with lies about yourself. That you're not pretty enough, good enough, no one likes you, nobody cares, you have no friends, no one loves you. Yes, I struggle daily with many of these things. These thoughts soon fill your mind and you start obsessing. You can't think of anything else. You're suffocating in these lies. The empty shape is the person you want to be, or are trying to be. The person you think people will like better, who'll be prettier, who will have love and friends and will feel good enough. But you soon lose yourself in this person you're trying to become, who is not you. Soon, your own self will die. Suffocate.
"Logic forces me to believe in this and I have learned to see
And I can only say what I've seen and heard and only you can choose
And every choice you make will affect you, search your own self"
If I told you that there was a baby born to a virgin, impossible, who lived a sin free life, impossible, who died and was brought back to life three days later, impossible, and God took him up to heaven, alive, also impossible, would you believe me? Well, that's your choice. Quite honestly, I could never and would never even try to force someone to believe in God. He gave us the freedom to decide for ourselves whether we want to serve him or not. If he forced us, what good would that do? We wouldn't have a choice to love him or not. And if we didn't have a choice, he wouldn't feel our love and want us to follow him as much as he does now, because we would have to. I have seen God work, I've witnessed it, I have proof. I have heard many stories of what he's done in the lives of my friends and people I don't even know. It's incredible. So choose for yourself, do you believe in this man who did the impossible? Basically, God came down to earth in human form. Simple as that. God is known for doing the impossible. If you do decide to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior and have not yet, PLEASE talk to me! I can pray with you, for you, or direct you to someone else if you're more comfortable with that. I just want to help YOU!
"Big enough to fill the void that inside of you
It's just a breath away"
You always hear people talking about how they have everything the world can offer them, everything they've ever wanted, a big house, nice cars, spending money, designer clothes, everything, but they still feel empty. If you don't have God, you don't have anything. "Don't hoard treasure down here where it gets eaten by moths and corroded by rust or—worse!—stolen by burglars. Stockpile treasure in heaven, where it's safe from moth and rust and burglars. It's obvious, isn't it? The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being." [Matthew 6:19-21, The Message] Things on this earth are only temporary, but God is forever. All you have to do to fill that emptiness, to ask Jesus into your heart, is say a few simple words.
This song, before I actually listened to the words and understood what they were saying, was just something I liked the tune of. Songs can be so much more than that. Look at your favorite song or songs, dissect it, really listen to what the lyrics are saying. Is that the kind of person you want to be? Is this how you want to define yourself? If not, I have plenty of music choices for you!
God bless,
Ariel
December 13, 2010
Love
For the past little while I've felt overwhelming love. Being given to me and my love for others. I've wanted to talk about love for a long time, but I could never find the words. Love is just that amazing. It leaves you speechless. It's indescribable. And we all want it. That's one of the number one things that Jesus asks you to do. "And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." - 1 Corinthians 13:13
I've felt so much love from people. I had been asking God to just show me that he loves me. Somehow, I just want to feel his love for me. I didn't realize it at the time, but I think that this is his way of showing me how much he loves me. The topic of me being baptised came up during English one day. Two friends of mine, who are awesome friends but I'm not super close with, said that they would love to come and support me on that day. That was so special. That they cared enough to go out of their way and come to my baptism. I did not expect that, and it was the highlight of my day.
My sister, Jenny, has poured out so much love on me. And I love her so much!!! I've never had a big sister before. The first time that we ever really talked, I was having a rough week, and she just talked and prayed with me. She loved me. Even though we had never really talked before, she loved me. Now, we do think of each other as sisters. Sisters in Christ! God is so good! I go to her with so much. It's so comforting to know that she's praying for me, that she cares so much about me. And I can't even explain the love that I feel for her. I think that when two people bond through Jesus, it's such a strong bond. It can't be broken. I was having a really bad week, and I get a message from her in the morning saying that she loves me and is praying for me and hopes I have a sweet day. That was the best day I had that week. And in a long time. Knowing that she was thinking about me and feeling that love, so unexpected, was just the most awesome feeling.
In this year, I've been trying to get reconnected with my family. I didn't have a lot to do with my dad's side throughout my childhood, and now I'm really trying. I feel so much love from them and for them. It's completely God's timing, I fully believe that.
I cracked at school this last week. I had a really overwhelming afternoon, dealing with personal stuff, friend stuff and school stuff. By the end of the day I was walking up the stairs and the flood gates opened. I really didn't want them to, and I was trying to stop crying, but my best friend saw me, and she came over and hugged me. Love. Then a teacher came out of his classroom, asked if I was okay, asked if he could do anything. Love. Another teacher asked if I was okay, and later came back, talked to me a bit more, asked if I wanted to see the guidance counsellor, and said he wasn't trying to be a creep, he was just worried. Love.
God has very recently blessed me with an overwhelming feeling of love for others. I think that this is only a fraction of what he feels for each individual person that he's created, I can't even imagine his love for us! Imagine this: The person on this earth that you love most. Picture their face, now, picture them hanging on a cross, being crucified. Hard, isn't it? Painful. That's what God did for us. He gave us his beloved son for our sins. I can't even imagine the pain he felt when Jesus was hung on that cross.
I have some friends who I feel incredible love for. I can't even begin to explain it. I cry so hard for them, I want them to do good, I want them to have the best life possible, I want to just protect them from everything, but I know I can't. When they hurt, I see it, and I hurt too. I think that God's revealed this love to me for a reason. I don't know that reason yet, but I can't wait to find out!
Personally, all I've ever wanted is love. I love love! I love giving love, I love receiving love! It's the most amazing feeling in the world! You don't have to be cheap with it guys, give out all the love you can. I'm begging you.
Blessings,
Ariel
I've felt so much love from people. I had been asking God to just show me that he loves me. Somehow, I just want to feel his love for me. I didn't realize it at the time, but I think that this is his way of showing me how much he loves me. The topic of me being baptised came up during English one day. Two friends of mine, who are awesome friends but I'm not super close with, said that they would love to come and support me on that day. That was so special. That they cared enough to go out of their way and come to my baptism. I did not expect that, and it was the highlight of my day.
My sister, Jenny, has poured out so much love on me. And I love her so much!!! I've never had a big sister before. The first time that we ever really talked, I was having a rough week, and she just talked and prayed with me. She loved me. Even though we had never really talked before, she loved me. Now, we do think of each other as sisters. Sisters in Christ! God is so good! I go to her with so much. It's so comforting to know that she's praying for me, that she cares so much about me. And I can't even explain the love that I feel for her. I think that when two people bond through Jesus, it's such a strong bond. It can't be broken. I was having a really bad week, and I get a message from her in the morning saying that she loves me and is praying for me and hopes I have a sweet day. That was the best day I had that week. And in a long time. Knowing that she was thinking about me and feeling that love, so unexpected, was just the most awesome feeling.
In this year, I've been trying to get reconnected with my family. I didn't have a lot to do with my dad's side throughout my childhood, and now I'm really trying. I feel so much love from them and for them. It's completely God's timing, I fully believe that.
I cracked at school this last week. I had a really overwhelming afternoon, dealing with personal stuff, friend stuff and school stuff. By the end of the day I was walking up the stairs and the flood gates opened. I really didn't want them to, and I was trying to stop crying, but my best friend saw me, and she came over and hugged me. Love. Then a teacher came out of his classroom, asked if I was okay, asked if he could do anything. Love. Another teacher asked if I was okay, and later came back, talked to me a bit more, asked if I wanted to see the guidance counsellor, and said he wasn't trying to be a creep, he was just worried. Love.
God has very recently blessed me with an overwhelming feeling of love for others. I think that this is only a fraction of what he feels for each individual person that he's created, I can't even imagine his love for us! Imagine this: The person on this earth that you love most. Picture their face, now, picture them hanging on a cross, being crucified. Hard, isn't it? Painful. That's what God did for us. He gave us his beloved son for our sins. I can't even imagine the pain he felt when Jesus was hung on that cross.
I have some friends who I feel incredible love for. I can't even begin to explain it. I cry so hard for them, I want them to do good, I want them to have the best life possible, I want to just protect them from everything, but I know I can't. When they hurt, I see it, and I hurt too. I think that God's revealed this love to me for a reason. I don't know that reason yet, but I can't wait to find out!
Personally, all I've ever wanted is love. I love love! I love giving love, I love receiving love! It's the most amazing feeling in the world! You don't have to be cheap with it guys, give out all the love you can. I'm begging you.
Blessings,
Ariel
December 4, 2010
My Generation
Swearing, smoking, sex, drugs, money, partying. This is what teenagers have become. This is what we think is "cool". I'm honestly becoming ashamed to be called a teenager. Because when you think "teenager", you think "swearing, smoking, sex, drugs, money, partying". There are people, adults, who are afraid of teenagers because of the name we've made for ourselves. And I'm sick of it.
Swearing. Oh, swearing, how I hate that you've become a part of my every day life. Would someone please tell me what the point of swearing is?! Yes, I realize it feels good to swear when you hurt yourself, or when you're ticked off, but really, what is the point?? As I have said before, there is a whole dictionary of words that can express the way you feel! You can even say them in french, spanish, german for all I care! "I'm pissed off" could easily be turned into "I'm ticked off" or "I'm cheesed off" (my personal favorite.) Yes, I am guilty of saying that something is pissing me off almost daily. And that's not something I'm proud of. But it's one of those "little" swears that no one cares about. Lately, it's been really annoying me. I catch myself saying it very often and it's really not needed. That's why I'm taking responsibility for my actions. I am making it my personal goal to not say "piss". Please correct me if you catch me. I'm not going to go through the whole dictionary of swears we have. That is just an example. But seriously, the next person who says "the f word" is gonna get a smack. It's really not necessary. At all. It's a stupid word. I have friends who put that word into the middle of sentences for NO REASON AT ALL!!!! And it makes me mad. Because it wasn't necessary. At all. You can say, "Look at that effing motorcycle" oooor, "Look at that motorcycle." Big difference, eh? So hard to take that one word out of the sentence! Or so say my friends.
Smoking. I will actually just show you a video to express my thoughts on smoking.
I love Brad Stine. He doesn't sugar coat stuff. Christian comedian. It just proves that you don't have to have dirty jokes or swear to be funny. Watch some of his stuff, so good!
Sex. Seriously, I have never understood the big deal with "getting it over with". This is something for you and your husband or wife to share. Not you, your husband or wife, that guy from 10th grade, the one night stand, the 3 guys from 11th grade and the other one you thought you would marry but he got away. When you have sex with one person, you're also being exposed to all the previous people they have slept with. This is the one thing I have to say to all the teenage people: GET YOUR HEADS OUTTA YOUR BUTTS AND SAVE YOURSELF!!!! It's really not that hard. Remember that word that we've been saying to our parents since we could talk? What was it again...oh yeah. No. Really not that hard. Just saying.
Drugs. Same thing as smoking. Well, kind of. But just like smoking, I have never seen the point in snorting a powder up through your nose. Or injecting it into your blood stream. What attracts people to that? I don't understand.
Money. Have you noticed how young people start to apply for jobs now? Grade 6 or 7, I'm pretty sure. Because we're so obsessed with money. We want money because we want material things. We want material things because that's how we were raised. But in the bible it says that material things do not last. They don't last. I had a pair of boots that I loved. They are now broken. Material things do not last. You cannot care about money and about God. It's one or the other. I choose God. And that's a hard thing to do as a human, because naturally, I want that new perfume. I want that designer purse. I want it all. But I have to get my priorities straight.
Parties. I have never been invited to a party. Apparently, people hear things about Morden. It's where all the Winkler people go to party. That also makes me ashamed. To live in a "party town". You could either have fun with a bunch of your friends at Tim Hortons and get completely healthy (or healthier than beer) coffee, or you could invite a bunch of random people to a party, get drunk, and not remember a thing the next day. Seems like a no-brainer when ya put it that way, right?
I'm tired of seeing my generation sinking. Because that's what we're doing. We've stopped caring. We're doing whatever we want. And it has to stop. I am sick of it. I don't want to be known for swearing, smoking, sex, drugs, money or partying. I want to be known for being on fire for my Daddy, the King, my God. Being a teenager, that's not easy. But I'm trying. I'm also in the process of taking a 22 Day Challenge. Go check out the website http://www.iamsecond.com/ . Very encouraging.
God bless,
Ariel
Swearing. Oh, swearing, how I hate that you've become a part of my every day life. Would someone please tell me what the point of swearing is?! Yes, I realize it feels good to swear when you hurt yourself, or when you're ticked off, but really, what is the point?? As I have said before, there is a whole dictionary of words that can express the way you feel! You can even say them in french, spanish, german for all I care! "I'm pissed off" could easily be turned into "I'm ticked off" or "I'm cheesed off" (my personal favorite.) Yes, I am guilty of saying that something is pissing me off almost daily. And that's not something I'm proud of. But it's one of those "little" swears that no one cares about. Lately, it's been really annoying me. I catch myself saying it very often and it's really not needed. That's why I'm taking responsibility for my actions. I am making it my personal goal to not say "piss". Please correct me if you catch me. I'm not going to go through the whole dictionary of swears we have. That is just an example. But seriously, the next person who says "the f word" is gonna get a smack. It's really not necessary. At all. It's a stupid word. I have friends who put that word into the middle of sentences for NO REASON AT ALL!!!! And it makes me mad. Because it wasn't necessary. At all. You can say, "Look at that effing motorcycle" oooor, "Look at that motorcycle." Big difference, eh? So hard to take that one word out of the sentence! Or so say my friends.
Smoking. I will actually just show you a video to express my thoughts on smoking.
I love Brad Stine. He doesn't sugar coat stuff. Christian comedian. It just proves that you don't have to have dirty jokes or swear to be funny. Watch some of his stuff, so good!
Sex. Seriously, I have never understood the big deal with "getting it over with". This is something for you and your husband or wife to share. Not you, your husband or wife, that guy from 10th grade, the one night stand, the 3 guys from 11th grade and the other one you thought you would marry but he got away. When you have sex with one person, you're also being exposed to all the previous people they have slept with. This is the one thing I have to say to all the teenage people: GET YOUR HEADS OUTTA YOUR BUTTS AND SAVE YOURSELF!!!! It's really not that hard. Remember that word that we've been saying to our parents since we could talk? What was it again...oh yeah. No. Really not that hard. Just saying.
Drugs. Same thing as smoking. Well, kind of. But just like smoking, I have never seen the point in snorting a powder up through your nose. Or injecting it into your blood stream. What attracts people to that? I don't understand.
Money. Have you noticed how young people start to apply for jobs now? Grade 6 or 7, I'm pretty sure. Because we're so obsessed with money. We want money because we want material things. We want material things because that's how we were raised. But in the bible it says that material things do not last. They don't last. I had a pair of boots that I loved. They are now broken. Material things do not last. You cannot care about money and about God. It's one or the other. I choose God. And that's a hard thing to do as a human, because naturally, I want that new perfume. I want that designer purse. I want it all. But I have to get my priorities straight.
Parties. I have never been invited to a party. Apparently, people hear things about Morden. It's where all the Winkler people go to party. That also makes me ashamed. To live in a "party town". You could either have fun with a bunch of your friends at Tim Hortons and get completely healthy (or healthier than beer) coffee, or you could invite a bunch of random people to a party, get drunk, and not remember a thing the next day. Seems like a no-brainer when ya put it that way, right?
I'm tired of seeing my generation sinking. Because that's what we're doing. We've stopped caring. We're doing whatever we want. And it has to stop. I am sick of it. I don't want to be known for swearing, smoking, sex, drugs, money or partying. I want to be known for being on fire for my Daddy, the King, my God. Being a teenager, that's not easy. But I'm trying. I'm also in the process of taking a 22 Day Challenge. Go check out the website http://www.iamsecond.com/ . Very encouraging.
God bless,
Ariel
December 1, 2010
[CHRIST]mas
I was sitting at the stair case during lunch, checking my facebook, as per usual. I was so done with the day by about 10am. Obviously, my day was not about to get any better. I'm scrolling through the statuses, and see: "23 more days until presents!" PRESENTS?! And so my status became: "Can we please put CHRIST back into CHRISTmas?" What happened, guys? The worst part was, I had went to camp with this person years ago. She knows about God. I hate seeing people fall, knowing I can't do anything about it. That's been the heaviest burden on my heart, lately. I see what all my friends are doing, knowing what the consequence is going to be, knowing full well that they're not going to listen to me. It makes me want to cry.
But honestly, guys. Have we not heard enough about the "true meaning of Christmas" yet? Do we have to keep coming back to this? I understand little kids being excited about presents. They're small, they get new toys, what kid doesn't want that?! I always wanted new toys! But as of last year, it just hasn't felt the same anymore. I bought a bunch of presents last year for my friends and family, and I was so excited to watch them open it. To be giving them something that they may have for a long time. I loved it. That was my favorite part about Christmas last year. Giving, not getting. Sure, I always like getting new things, but I didn't look forward to it as much as I used to.
I remember someone saying that everyone loves Jesus around Christmas time. Well duh. Jesus birthday and everything, everyone's cheerful, it looks gorgeous outside (but does not feel gorgeous, i might add), there's twinkly lights everywhere, snowmen. Everyone just seems happier for some reason. Joyful. And I'm not saying that we shouldn't like Christmas, or that those are shallow reasons to like Christmas. I'm just saying, remember what we're celebrating. After Christmas is over, many people couldn't care less about Jesus. That makes me sad. I hate that right after Christmas, is New Years. Perfect reason to get drunk, right? No. Parties do not equal drinking. Want to have real fun? Be yourself and just chill out with your friends. Drinking ruins you. Really.
Another thing I'm sick of: this Santa dude stealing credit for Christmas. He's fake. Not real. Never has been. Never will be. Sorry to burst your bubble, but if you're reading this blog and you still think santa is real, well I really have nothing to say to that...
You always see those blow-up santas on people's lawns. Some fat dude in a red suit whose reindeers can fly, and he delivers presents to every single person in one night. How does he do it?! Hmm, I don't know, maybe it's the fact that it's your parents stashing the presents under the tree, not some fat dude, and it's your parents eating the milk and cookies, not some fat dude. He's not real. It's fun for little kids. But honestly, we need to grow up. If we're still having santa decorations everywhere, and giving him credit for Christmas and talking about him all December, then we've missed the mark. Santa is not real. Jesus is. He was a real person. He's still alive. Guys, if we celebrate a fake person who gives us material things during Christmas rather than Jesus, who gave his life for us, who loves us so much, then we've missed the mark. Have you ever once heard your parents say, "Santa loves you." ? No. Exactly. He doesn't. Because he's not real.
I find this next thing kind of interesting. I made a typo while spelling 'santa'. Can ya guess what I said instead? Satan. That was my typo. Now I'm thinking, did satan create santa so that Jesus wouldn't get celebrated during Christmas? Satan knows that Jesus should be on everyone's minds right now, but instead we're filled with shallow things like presents and santa and decorations.
My request to you right now, is to look past those shallow things and really spend time with Jesus. Not just now, not just during the Christmas season, but for the following week, month, year, decade, life!! You will never stop learning. I can guarantee you that.
Blessings,
Ariel
But honestly, guys. Have we not heard enough about the "true meaning of Christmas" yet? Do we have to keep coming back to this? I understand little kids being excited about presents. They're small, they get new toys, what kid doesn't want that?! I always wanted new toys! But as of last year, it just hasn't felt the same anymore. I bought a bunch of presents last year for my friends and family, and I was so excited to watch them open it. To be giving them something that they may have for a long time. I loved it. That was my favorite part about Christmas last year. Giving, not getting. Sure, I always like getting new things, but I didn't look forward to it as much as I used to.
I remember someone saying that everyone loves Jesus around Christmas time. Well duh. Jesus birthday and everything, everyone's cheerful, it looks gorgeous outside (but does not feel gorgeous, i might add), there's twinkly lights everywhere, snowmen. Everyone just seems happier for some reason. Joyful. And I'm not saying that we shouldn't like Christmas, or that those are shallow reasons to like Christmas. I'm just saying, remember what we're celebrating. After Christmas is over, many people couldn't care less about Jesus. That makes me sad. I hate that right after Christmas, is New Years. Perfect reason to get drunk, right? No. Parties do not equal drinking. Want to have real fun? Be yourself and just chill out with your friends. Drinking ruins you. Really.
Another thing I'm sick of: this Santa dude stealing credit for Christmas. He's fake. Not real. Never has been. Never will be. Sorry to burst your bubble, but if you're reading this blog and you still think santa is real, well I really have nothing to say to that...
You always see those blow-up santas on people's lawns. Some fat dude in a red suit whose reindeers can fly, and he delivers presents to every single person in one night. How does he do it?! Hmm, I don't know, maybe it's the fact that it's your parents stashing the presents under the tree, not some fat dude, and it's your parents eating the milk and cookies, not some fat dude. He's not real. It's fun for little kids. But honestly, we need to grow up. If we're still having santa decorations everywhere, and giving him credit for Christmas and talking about him all December, then we've missed the mark. Santa is not real. Jesus is. He was a real person. He's still alive. Guys, if we celebrate a fake person who gives us material things during Christmas rather than Jesus, who gave his life for us, who loves us so much, then we've missed the mark. Have you ever once heard your parents say, "Santa loves you." ? No. Exactly. He doesn't. Because he's not real.
I find this next thing kind of interesting. I made a typo while spelling 'santa'. Can ya guess what I said instead? Satan. That was my typo. Now I'm thinking, did satan create santa so that Jesus wouldn't get celebrated during Christmas? Satan knows that Jesus should be on everyone's minds right now, but instead we're filled with shallow things like presents and santa and decorations.
My request to you right now, is to look past those shallow things and really spend time with Jesus. Not just now, not just during the Christmas season, but for the following week, month, year, decade, life!! You will never stop learning. I can guarantee you that.
Blessings,
Ariel
November 27, 2010
Scream
You know, the one thing that gets under my skin the most is when people take their opinions, and put words in God's mouth. It makes my blood boil. Things like when I'm listening to my music, "Oh, I bet God hates that music". Yes, it is metal, yes, they do scream, yes, THEY ARE A CHRISTIAN BAND!!! They are talking about God defeating hell, about loving the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind, they are just doing it in a way that reaches kids who don't get the word of God in any other way. Apparently, if you don't like screaming, that's not a good thing. I listen to bands like Hawk Nelson, Amanda Falk, For Today, Flyleaf, The Letter Black, Seventh Day Slumber, Group 1 Crew, David Crowder Band, Breaking Benjamin, TobyMac, Bluetree, Rapture Ruckus, Manafest, Thousand Foot Krutch, Skillet, Carrie Underwood, Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus, for crying out loud! I listen to pretty much everything. Except opera. Or the Beach Boys. Ick. You could not pay me enough money to listen to either of those. Check some of those bands out. Even if you only listen to the first 30 seconds of their songs and then turn it off. I'm not telling you to like this music or just get off the face of the earth. I'm asking you to listen to the music, decide for yourself if you like it, and listen to the lyrics. If nothing else, listen to the lyrics. (Or look them up, if you can't understand them :) ) They are all very different groups. Metal, rock, praise and worship, alternative, country, whatever! I love it. Diversity, in anything, makes us beautiful.
Another thing, "Who ever said that Jesus was fun?" (By the way, I am not saying names in this because I don't want these people to get hurt. I am angry. I am venting. But I am not bringing you into it. Please don't make this a big deal.) Who ever said Jesus wasn't fun?!?!?! Agh!!!! First off, if people didn't have fun with Jesus, do you think anyone would follow him? No! Would people listen to him talk for hours on end? No! Would people try to get other people to follow him? No! How would people get to follow Jesus if he was boring? "Oh yeah, there's this guy...in heaven...who loves you...nothing exciting really happens in your life...you just kinda believe in him...even though you can't see him...but you know...he loves you...so you should follow him." NO!!! Guys, I have seen proof of God. That is so exciting! When God works in your life. When he shows himself, when he works in others lives. It makes you want to jump and scream and dance all around the room! It's fun. It's exciting. Working at camp, serving God, it's fun. If I didn't have fun at camp, I would not work there. It's as simple as that. Yes, God has some serious work for us to do. But I think he wants us to have fun with it. He doesn't want us to suffer. He won't give you anything that you can't handle.
Here's the thing. I try to speak the truth all the time. If I've offended you, get over it. This is what is true. I hope that I haven't butchered any of this. If I have, I'm sorry, please correct me. But, if you say "You've offended me" to anything that I've said that is true, this is my reply: "I don't care." I'm not being mean. I'm being truthful. I really do love you all. And I will show you love, but I'm also an incredibly sarcastic and irritating individual, as some of you will and have found out. I am me. Take it or leave it. I'm not changing for anybody, and I've learned that you can't please everyone, so please God, and no one else matters after that.
God bless,
Ariel
Another thing, "Who ever said that Jesus was fun?" (By the way, I am not saying names in this because I don't want these people to get hurt. I am angry. I am venting. But I am not bringing you into it. Please don't make this a big deal.) Who ever said Jesus wasn't fun?!?!?! Agh!!!! First off, if people didn't have fun with Jesus, do you think anyone would follow him? No! Would people listen to him talk for hours on end? No! Would people try to get other people to follow him? No! How would people get to follow Jesus if he was boring? "Oh yeah, there's this guy...in heaven...who loves you...nothing exciting really happens in your life...you just kinda believe in him...even though you can't see him...but you know...he loves you...so you should follow him." NO!!! Guys, I have seen proof of God. That is so exciting! When God works in your life. When he shows himself, when he works in others lives. It makes you want to jump and scream and dance all around the room! It's fun. It's exciting. Working at camp, serving God, it's fun. If I didn't have fun at camp, I would not work there. It's as simple as that. Yes, God has some serious work for us to do. But I think he wants us to have fun with it. He doesn't want us to suffer. He won't give you anything that you can't handle.
Here's the thing. I try to speak the truth all the time. If I've offended you, get over it. This is what is true. I hope that I haven't butchered any of this. If I have, I'm sorry, please correct me. But, if you say "You've offended me" to anything that I've said that is true, this is my reply: "I don't care." I'm not being mean. I'm being truthful. I really do love you all. And I will show you love, but I'm also an incredibly sarcastic and irritating individual, as some of you will and have found out. I am me. Take it or leave it. I'm not changing for anybody, and I've learned that you can't please everyone, so please God, and no one else matters after that.
God bless,
Ariel
November 21, 2010
Tick, tick, tick...
Okay, this blog post is most likely going to be very much out of anger. Unless you'd rather call it passion. Or some other word. Either way, brace yourselves, I am a ticking time bomb right now...
First off, I am going to be a rebel for God. Whether you like it or not. People have certain opinions, but when they try to tie those opinions in with things in the bible, that are not right, that is a huge pet peeve of mine. I will get angry. I will snap. My head may blow off of my body. Just saying. I am going to get tattoos. Pretty sure no one's going to change that. I don't want to be like everyone else. I want to be unique. Having a tattoo can open a door. That door being someone asking, "What does your tattoo mean to you?" Huge door. I love that door. People tend to think that all Christians have to be little goody-two-shoes, good little Church goers. Um, k, we're people, not clones. (P.S., I am just a tad ticked off, if you have not already noticed) When people look at me in the future, they'll probably say, "she doesn't look like a Christian" and label me right off the bat. I'm going to break the chain. Your looks don't define who you are. Your body is your outer shell. I am going to have piercings and tattoos. I may dress in crazy clothes or have crazy hair. I have no idea what I'm going to do! But that's what I love. The unpredictability of it. I just want to have fun. But, if something does not honour God, I'm not going to do it. Let's get that clear right now. My life is not my own, but God's. Part of the reason I want to get tattoos is to open that door. But I also want to be able to look at my arm in a time of troubles and see and encouraging verse that will keep me hanging on. This is my opinion. My personal view point. It is not right or wrong. This is just who I am. I might have said something dumb in there. I have no idea, but please don't fight me on this. Don't try to change me. It's not going to happen. And I will get very angry, and I will blow up. Again, just saying.
Also, girls, I have a bone to pick with you. Read closely. I'm not talking to anyone in particular (except the women, of course). This may not even apply to you. But I feel that it's necessary. At the start of the summer, I really wasn't sure why WBC had such a strict dress code. No cleavage, no bra straps, shorts have to have a 3 inch in-seam, no bikinis, etc. (Not sure what the guy's code was, seeing as I'm not a dude) But since then, I've had numerous opportunities to see into the mind of a male. At camp the girls got to ask the guy leaders questions, and vise versa. I went to a Healthy Sexuality youth thing. Everyone you talk to, will tell you that guys are incredibly visual. Now I get why the dress code was so strict. Apparently, some guys can get turned on by something, what girls see as a little thing, like bra straps. So girls, now it comes to our job. COVER UP!!!!!!! It really is as simple as that. If your tank top goes just a bit too low that you can see cleavage, wear an under shirt. If you have to keep tugging at your shorts to cover up your butt, chances are, your shorts are too short. If you're uncomfortable or self conscious in anything you're wearing, you probably shouldn't be wearing it. Wow, logical, isn't it? I honestly don't know how girls can be so comfortable with having half of their boobs hanging out of their shirt. a) it's not attractive at all and b) it does not look comfortable. Yet I see it all the time at school. You want your boyfriend to stop pressuring you to have sex? Stop dressing slutty. Never would've guessed that one, would ya? (If you haven't caught the sarcasm in this text yet, I'm incredibly sorry. I'm sure I'll get a slap from someone for this post.)
Wow, it feels good to get that out of my system. I'm sure there will be some chuckles at this post. There usually are when I get worked up. This really wasn't a "big deal" post, but really just something I felt that I needed to get out there.
God bless you guys,
Ariel
First off, I am going to be a rebel for God. Whether you like it or not. People have certain opinions, but when they try to tie those opinions in with things in the bible, that are not right, that is a huge pet peeve of mine. I will get angry. I will snap. My head may blow off of my body. Just saying. I am going to get tattoos. Pretty sure no one's going to change that. I don't want to be like everyone else. I want to be unique. Having a tattoo can open a door. That door being someone asking, "What does your tattoo mean to you?" Huge door. I love that door. People tend to think that all Christians have to be little goody-two-shoes, good little Church goers. Um, k, we're people, not clones. (P.S., I am just a tad ticked off, if you have not already noticed) When people look at me in the future, they'll probably say, "she doesn't look like a Christian" and label me right off the bat. I'm going to break the chain. Your looks don't define who you are. Your body is your outer shell. I am going to have piercings and tattoos. I may dress in crazy clothes or have crazy hair. I have no idea what I'm going to do! But that's what I love. The unpredictability of it. I just want to have fun. But, if something does not honour God, I'm not going to do it. Let's get that clear right now. My life is not my own, but God's. Part of the reason I want to get tattoos is to open that door. But I also want to be able to look at my arm in a time of troubles and see and encouraging verse that will keep me hanging on. This is my opinion. My personal view point. It is not right or wrong. This is just who I am. I might have said something dumb in there. I have no idea, but please don't fight me on this. Don't try to change me. It's not going to happen. And I will get very angry, and I will blow up. Again, just saying.
Also, girls, I have a bone to pick with you. Read closely. I'm not talking to anyone in particular (except the women, of course). This may not even apply to you. But I feel that it's necessary. At the start of the summer, I really wasn't sure why WBC had such a strict dress code. No cleavage, no bra straps, shorts have to have a 3 inch in-seam, no bikinis, etc. (Not sure what the guy's code was, seeing as I'm not a dude) But since then, I've had numerous opportunities to see into the mind of a male. At camp the girls got to ask the guy leaders questions, and vise versa. I went to a Healthy Sexuality youth thing. Everyone you talk to, will tell you that guys are incredibly visual. Now I get why the dress code was so strict. Apparently, some guys can get turned on by something, what girls see as a little thing, like bra straps. So girls, now it comes to our job. COVER UP!!!!!!! It really is as simple as that. If your tank top goes just a bit too low that you can see cleavage, wear an under shirt. If you have to keep tugging at your shorts to cover up your butt, chances are, your shorts are too short. If you're uncomfortable or self conscious in anything you're wearing, you probably shouldn't be wearing it. Wow, logical, isn't it? I honestly don't know how girls can be so comfortable with having half of their boobs hanging out of their shirt. a) it's not attractive at all and b) it does not look comfortable. Yet I see it all the time at school. You want your boyfriend to stop pressuring you to have sex? Stop dressing slutty. Never would've guessed that one, would ya? (If you haven't caught the sarcasm in this text yet, I'm incredibly sorry. I'm sure I'll get a slap from someone for this post.)
Wow, it feels good to get that out of my system. I'm sure there will be some chuckles at this post. There usually are when I get worked up. This really wasn't a "big deal" post, but really just something I felt that I needed to get out there.
God bless you guys,
Ariel
November 17, 2010
Kingdom [Day 2]
Day 2 started very early, earlier than any of us had intended! 7am. Kristy is an early riser, but a heavy sleeper, makes me laugh :) Oh, this was a full day! 7am until 1am. Brace yourselves.
We are the light of God. Word for word from my journal. Chris told the story about when Jesus took 3 of his disciples, Peter, James and John up to a mountain. Jesus was transformed right in front of them, his face shone as bright as the sun, his clothes white as the light, and Elijah and Moses appeared. God said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!" [Matthew 17:1-13]. Jesus shone like the light because he was God's light. We're supposed to be God's light to the world. People are supposed to look at us and not be able to figure out why we are the way we are, and want what we have. Do you know what the greatest miracle to ever take place on this earth is?? No? Can't think of it? Do you want to know? When the Holy Spirit enters your body, enters your heart, and makes you a child of God, that is the greatest miracle that can ever, ever happen. God recreates. If you're an alcoholic, or do drugs, or a prostitute, or anything else, and you invite Jesus into your heart, don't expect him to completely destroy and rebuild you. He won't do that. It's not that easy. What he will do is recreate your mind, your soul, your spirit. He'll renew you. He'll make you into His image, with a lot of prayer, faith and hard work from you. I'm only beginning this journey, but guys, it is so worth it! This is going to sound harsh, but if you really look at it, every single one of us, is dirt. Now, I don't mean this in a way of putting people down. God made this earth, he made everything on it, he made us. When he made Adam, he made him out of dirt. He breathed the breath of life into Adam's nose. Chris said not his mouth, because that would be CPR. Haha. We're all made out of the dirt of the earth. A lot of the time, in the bible it says man did this and man did that, when it says "man", it means all of mankind, women included. Here's a really cool thing that we learned: Your body is not the real you. It's the outer shell. Your spirit, that's the real you. Chris said that people are wrong when they say "I have cancer" or whatever, they should say "My body has cancer", because your body is not the real you, your spirit is.
Earth is like boot camp. And some days, I know it sure feels like it! Basically, God's training us for leadership. You have the power to transform this world. All things are possible in Christ who strengthens me. All things. One thing that Chris said, was that God never told you to "afford" anything, he just told you to do it. Trust in him, and do what he asks of you, and he will supply. Man, this is gonna be one wild ride!
Like I've said before, the Holy Spirit is in us. God communicates to us through the Holy Spirit. When God thinks something, you will think it too. Your thoughts come from Him. Don't get me wrong, he's not going to give you evil thoughts. That's completely the devil trying to get you off track. DON'T LET HIM!! Fight. Fight hard. God has emotions. He has deep emotions. When you hurt, it hurts him even more deeply, he hates to see us hurt. When someone is saved, and brought to Christ, he rejoices! He's so happy! He can't contain himself! I know a lot of the times, I've never thought about God having emotions. But it's so cool, how deeply wrapped up in us he is, that when we feel, he feels.
Another cool thing: God doesn't hide our destiny from us, he hides it for us. He wants us to find our destiny! But he wants us to look for it, to be so wrapped up in him, so that he can reveal it to us. When we ask, he will help us. Seek and you will find. God, he has a book in heaven written about you. About your destiny. About what he wants you to do. The desires that you have, he puts them in your heart. If you desire a husband, God will give you a husband. If you desire children, God will give you children. If you desire a car, or a house, God will give it to you. But keep in mind, it's all in his will. Your kingdom come, your will be done, Father.
You know how when a girl knows that a guy likes her, she plays "hard to get"? Just because it's encouraging for girls when a guy pursues her. It makes them confident. It makes them feel wanted, loved. God does the exact same thing! He wants you to pursue him! He wants to feel loved by you and wanted by you! He's not going to come somewhere that he's not welcomed or respected. You have to invite him. You have to want him.
Chris told us about the three things that we can never talk about in a mean or hateful way: Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and the blood of Jesus. Jesus is so precious. He loves you so much. It hurts him when you talk about him in a hateful way, and it should hurt you too. It's not in any way acceptable.
You need to be intimate with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is your ticket to God. He wants to have a relationship with you. The Holy Spirit is living inside of you, you can't get any closer! Romans 12:11 says to be on fire for God!
Another thing that we learned, was that when something Heavenly is lifted off of you, people tend to look for something earthly to cover you. Like Adam and Eve, after Adam at the fruit from the tree that God told them not to eat from, they realized that they were naked. They looked for leaves to cover their bodies, because they sinned against God. Also tying into that, when something Heavenly is removed, religion comes in. Everyone talks about religion and being Christian and stuff, but personally, I don't like the term Christian. Jesus never called us to be "Christians", he called us to follow him. Followers of Christ. Religion, I think, is just going through the motions. Because we feel we have to. I don't want that.
Jesus should be our standard. Not a camp counsellor, or anyone else. We should strive to be like Him. He should be our role model. It makes me so sad to see girls looking up to famous people like Rhianna or Katy Perry, or whoever. Don't get me wrong, I don't know who they are as a person, because I've never met them, but neither do these girls, and that's what makes me nervous. You see Rhianna or Katy wearing very little clothing, a lot of makeup, their lyrics are not appropriate. We think that that's the person they are. And that scares me, because how a person looks, and what they sing, are not who they are, but that's what these girls look up to. Looks and lyrics.
Romans 12:2 says, "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." One thing that Chris said to us was that we should look at the Bible like we're looking into a mirror. You should be a reflection of Jesus.
A super cool thing that we experienced this weekend was healing. Dean (our youth pastor) came up to the front after praise and worship on Saturday morning. He started saying that God had given him a vision that there was someone there who had one leg shorter than the other and that it caused them pain throughout their body. He asked them to raise their hand, and two sisters raised their hands. (They did give me permission to share this story.) He asked them to come up to the front, and sit down with their legs out so that he could see the difference. He asked Chris and Kris to come up to the front and pray for them. They started with Natalie, she's about my age, they just started praying and praying, and afterwards went to Alayna, the older sister, and prayed for her. Guys, NATALIE AND ALAYNA ARE HEALED!!!!!! I cannot stress enough how real this is! Their legs are now the same length. I talked to them yesterday, their legs are still good. Amazing. God is so good, guys. Right there, in front of all of us, God showed himself to us. After reading this, there is no way you could tell me that there is not a God. Because deep down inside you, that seed is planted. And it's all my fault :) Chris was saying how every day, people say that their back hurts, or their arm, or something that's causing them discomfort. He said that all we have to do is ask them if we can pray for them. The worst thing that they can say is no. All you have to pray is this, "The kingdom of God has come upon you. In the name of Jesus Christ, be healed!" That's it. You just have to believe, have faith, that God can do anything. And honestly, he really can. You can't afford to think, "what if". It just isn't an option. He still performs miracles, he's not done with us, guys! And to those of you who are still struggling with deciding whether you believe in God or not, think about this: You can't see your brain between your ears, but you have faith that you do, in fact, have a brain.
In the evening session, Chris called us all forward, we sang Fire Fall Down again. Then he asked whoever didn't feel filled with the Holy Spirit to step forward. I didn't at first, but I felt God pushing me, so after a little push from Him, I stepped forward along with about 10 other people. Chris, Kris and Dean started going from person to person and praying with them. On November 13, 2010, I was baptized in the Holy Spirit. We all learned how to speak in tongues. I really don't like saying "learned" but I don't know how else to phrase it. At first, I was just scared. About what was going to come out of my mouth, if I was going to sound stupid, what people would think, what if it didn't come naturally, what if I was just making it up. But again, we can't afford to think, "what if". After I just let go of whatever worries I had, and it took a little bit, the words just started flowing. Let me tell you, speaking in tongues was something I never thought I would experience or be able to do. I thought that you wouldn't know what was happening, that God would all of a sudden just make weird words come out of your mouth. But it doesn't work that way. Once I let the words come out, they flowed. I have no clue what I said, I didn't even listen to myself as I was speaking, I don't try, I don't think. It is the most amazing gift from God. That night I also talked to Kristy about my past, I had really been struggling with it for a long time. She prayed for me, and she said, "You know, in God's mind, none of that stuff ever happened. It doesn't exist. Never happened." So, so true. Ever since I started thinking about that, I've been at so much peace. It never happened. My past never happened. I love that.
Don't get me wrong, this weekend wasn't all such serious and heavy stuff. Although, the heavy stuff was probably my favorite part! We did this game, the Blanket Toss. So fun! Basically, a bunch of people are around a blanket, holding onto the handles. A person goes in the middle, and we all yell "One! Two! THREE!" And throw them up in the air! Sooo fun! I went, I was really scared to, but man, I flew!! I'm so light, so I went so high! (I just realized I used the word "so" three times in that sentence, is that grammatically correct? If Adam Wiebe is reading this right now, this is all I have to say to you: Smart AleK.) After the evening session some of us stayed back and were just hanging out. The guys started talking about poop (no surprise) and I was the only girl there, so I decided to go to be before the lights all got shut off on me. I was walking back to our chalet, and after about 5 seconds, I hear Hannah Montana blasting out of the Wigwam!! It wouldn't have been so funny, but there were like, 15 guys in there, rocking out to Hannah Montana!!! Soooo funny!
Blessings,
Ariel
P.S. I will try to finish Day 3 soon!!
We are the light of God. Word for word from my journal. Chris told the story about when Jesus took 3 of his disciples, Peter, James and John up to a mountain. Jesus was transformed right in front of them, his face shone as bright as the sun, his clothes white as the light, and Elijah and Moses appeared. God said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!" [Matthew 17:1-13]. Jesus shone like the light because he was God's light. We're supposed to be God's light to the world. People are supposed to look at us and not be able to figure out why we are the way we are, and want what we have. Do you know what the greatest miracle to ever take place on this earth is?? No? Can't think of it? Do you want to know? When the Holy Spirit enters your body, enters your heart, and makes you a child of God, that is the greatest miracle that can ever, ever happen. God recreates. If you're an alcoholic, or do drugs, or a prostitute, or anything else, and you invite Jesus into your heart, don't expect him to completely destroy and rebuild you. He won't do that. It's not that easy. What he will do is recreate your mind, your soul, your spirit. He'll renew you. He'll make you into His image, with a lot of prayer, faith and hard work from you. I'm only beginning this journey, but guys, it is so worth it! This is going to sound harsh, but if you really look at it, every single one of us, is dirt. Now, I don't mean this in a way of putting people down. God made this earth, he made everything on it, he made us. When he made Adam, he made him out of dirt. He breathed the breath of life into Adam's nose. Chris said not his mouth, because that would be CPR. Haha. We're all made out of the dirt of the earth. A lot of the time, in the bible it says man did this and man did that, when it says "man", it means all of mankind, women included. Here's a really cool thing that we learned: Your body is not the real you. It's the outer shell. Your spirit, that's the real you. Chris said that people are wrong when they say "I have cancer" or whatever, they should say "My body has cancer", because your body is not the real you, your spirit is.
Earth is like boot camp. And some days, I know it sure feels like it! Basically, God's training us for leadership. You have the power to transform this world. All things are possible in Christ who strengthens me. All things. One thing that Chris said, was that God never told you to "afford" anything, he just told you to do it. Trust in him, and do what he asks of you, and he will supply. Man, this is gonna be one wild ride!
Like I've said before, the Holy Spirit is in us. God communicates to us through the Holy Spirit. When God thinks something, you will think it too. Your thoughts come from Him. Don't get me wrong, he's not going to give you evil thoughts. That's completely the devil trying to get you off track. DON'T LET HIM!! Fight. Fight hard. God has emotions. He has deep emotions. When you hurt, it hurts him even more deeply, he hates to see us hurt. When someone is saved, and brought to Christ, he rejoices! He's so happy! He can't contain himself! I know a lot of the times, I've never thought about God having emotions. But it's so cool, how deeply wrapped up in us he is, that when we feel, he feels.
Another cool thing: God doesn't hide our destiny from us, he hides it for us. He wants us to find our destiny! But he wants us to look for it, to be so wrapped up in him, so that he can reveal it to us. When we ask, he will help us. Seek and you will find. God, he has a book in heaven written about you. About your destiny. About what he wants you to do. The desires that you have, he puts them in your heart. If you desire a husband, God will give you a husband. If you desire children, God will give you children. If you desire a car, or a house, God will give it to you. But keep in mind, it's all in his will. Your kingdom come, your will be done, Father.
You know how when a girl knows that a guy likes her, she plays "hard to get"? Just because it's encouraging for girls when a guy pursues her. It makes them confident. It makes them feel wanted, loved. God does the exact same thing! He wants you to pursue him! He wants to feel loved by you and wanted by you! He's not going to come somewhere that he's not welcomed or respected. You have to invite him. You have to want him.
Chris told us about the three things that we can never talk about in a mean or hateful way: Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and the blood of Jesus. Jesus is so precious. He loves you so much. It hurts him when you talk about him in a hateful way, and it should hurt you too. It's not in any way acceptable.
You need to be intimate with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is your ticket to God. He wants to have a relationship with you. The Holy Spirit is living inside of you, you can't get any closer! Romans 12:11 says to be on fire for God!
Another thing that we learned, was that when something Heavenly is lifted off of you, people tend to look for something earthly to cover you. Like Adam and Eve, after Adam at the fruit from the tree that God told them not to eat from, they realized that they were naked. They looked for leaves to cover their bodies, because they sinned against God. Also tying into that, when something Heavenly is removed, religion comes in. Everyone talks about religion and being Christian and stuff, but personally, I don't like the term Christian. Jesus never called us to be "Christians", he called us to follow him. Followers of Christ. Religion, I think, is just going through the motions. Because we feel we have to. I don't want that.
Jesus should be our standard. Not a camp counsellor, or anyone else. We should strive to be like Him. He should be our role model. It makes me so sad to see girls looking up to famous people like Rhianna or Katy Perry, or whoever. Don't get me wrong, I don't know who they are as a person, because I've never met them, but neither do these girls, and that's what makes me nervous. You see Rhianna or Katy wearing very little clothing, a lot of makeup, their lyrics are not appropriate. We think that that's the person they are. And that scares me, because how a person looks, and what they sing, are not who they are, but that's what these girls look up to. Looks and lyrics.
Romans 12:2 says, "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." One thing that Chris said to us was that we should look at the Bible like we're looking into a mirror. You should be a reflection of Jesus.
A super cool thing that we experienced this weekend was healing. Dean (our youth pastor) came up to the front after praise and worship on Saturday morning. He started saying that God had given him a vision that there was someone there who had one leg shorter than the other and that it caused them pain throughout their body. He asked them to raise their hand, and two sisters raised their hands. (They did give me permission to share this story.) He asked them to come up to the front, and sit down with their legs out so that he could see the difference. He asked Chris and Kris to come up to the front and pray for them. They started with Natalie, she's about my age, they just started praying and praying, and afterwards went to Alayna, the older sister, and prayed for her. Guys, NATALIE AND ALAYNA ARE HEALED!!!!!! I cannot stress enough how real this is! Their legs are now the same length. I talked to them yesterday, their legs are still good. Amazing. God is so good, guys. Right there, in front of all of us, God showed himself to us. After reading this, there is no way you could tell me that there is not a God. Because deep down inside you, that seed is planted. And it's all my fault :) Chris was saying how every day, people say that their back hurts, or their arm, or something that's causing them discomfort. He said that all we have to do is ask them if we can pray for them. The worst thing that they can say is no. All you have to pray is this, "The kingdom of God has come upon you. In the name of Jesus Christ, be healed!" That's it. You just have to believe, have faith, that God can do anything. And honestly, he really can. You can't afford to think, "what if". It just isn't an option. He still performs miracles, he's not done with us, guys! And to those of you who are still struggling with deciding whether you believe in God or not, think about this: You can't see your brain between your ears, but you have faith that you do, in fact, have a brain.
In the evening session, Chris called us all forward, we sang Fire Fall Down again. Then he asked whoever didn't feel filled with the Holy Spirit to step forward. I didn't at first, but I felt God pushing me, so after a little push from Him, I stepped forward along with about 10 other people. Chris, Kris and Dean started going from person to person and praying with them. On November 13, 2010, I was baptized in the Holy Spirit. We all learned how to speak in tongues. I really don't like saying "learned" but I don't know how else to phrase it. At first, I was just scared. About what was going to come out of my mouth, if I was going to sound stupid, what people would think, what if it didn't come naturally, what if I was just making it up. But again, we can't afford to think, "what if". After I just let go of whatever worries I had, and it took a little bit, the words just started flowing. Let me tell you, speaking in tongues was something I never thought I would experience or be able to do. I thought that you wouldn't know what was happening, that God would all of a sudden just make weird words come out of your mouth. But it doesn't work that way. Once I let the words come out, they flowed. I have no clue what I said, I didn't even listen to myself as I was speaking, I don't try, I don't think. It is the most amazing gift from God. That night I also talked to Kristy about my past, I had really been struggling with it for a long time. She prayed for me, and she said, "You know, in God's mind, none of that stuff ever happened. It doesn't exist. Never happened." So, so true. Ever since I started thinking about that, I've been at so much peace. It never happened. My past never happened. I love that.
Don't get me wrong, this weekend wasn't all such serious and heavy stuff. Although, the heavy stuff was probably my favorite part! We did this game, the Blanket Toss. So fun! Basically, a bunch of people are around a blanket, holding onto the handles. A person goes in the middle, and we all yell "One! Two! THREE!" And throw them up in the air! Sooo fun! I went, I was really scared to, but man, I flew!! I'm so light, so I went so high! (I just realized I used the word "so" three times in that sentence, is that grammatically correct? If Adam Wiebe is reading this right now, this is all I have to say to you: Smart AleK.) After the evening session some of us stayed back and were just hanging out. The guys started talking about poop (no surprise) and I was the only girl there, so I decided to go to be before the lights all got shut off on me. I was walking back to our chalet, and after about 5 seconds, I hear Hannah Montana blasting out of the Wigwam!! It wouldn't have been so funny, but there were like, 15 guys in there, rocking out to Hannah Montana!!! Soooo funny!
Blessings,
Ariel
P.S. I will try to finish Day 3 soon!!
November 14, 2010
Kingdom [Day 1]
This weekend I was at a youth retreat called Blast at Camp Arnes hosted by the Christian Life Center. My super awesome cousin Scott got me to go, and it was well worth it!
I had an amazing weekend, God was present for sure, I had barely been home 5 minutes and I already felt it slipping away. That's not good. I listened to Fire Fall Down by Hillsong to lift my spirits again. Just being with Jesus. Worshipping. I love it.
I don't know if any of you have ever heard Chris Karuhije speak before, but let me tell you, God is working in him. You can tell. You can see it. Amazing. He was our speaker for this weekend.
Now, while telling you about the sessions, I'm going to take everything straight from my notes. Notes are awesome, I knew that I was never going to remember everything that he said, that I would want to remember in the future. So here it goes. If I butcher any of this, so sorry!
He told us not to put a "box" around God. Not to put limits on Him. He can do everything and anything, guys. No questions. All things are possible through Jesus Christ who strengthens us! [Philippians 4:13] He told us that prophesying isn't like seeing the future, it's like encouragement, knowing what's going to happen and encouraging the person or people it's going to happen to. You know how when someone thinks about angels they think of those little naked babies with wings and an arrow? Yeah, angels are far from it! They're huge! Chris was telling us about one of his girlfriend's (Kristy) dreams, she dreamt that an angel was protecting her house, and she has a tall house, I think all she could see was the angel's leg. Another time someone saw a foot in the middle of a room. A giant foot. And they walked around the foot, it was the foot of an angel. How big does a foot have to be that you would have to walk around it?! Oh man guys, angels are always protecting us! How comforting is that? I love it. They're like the army of Heaven. Protecting us from Satan. From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” [Matthew 4:17]. 9 “This, then, is how you should pray: “‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. [Matthew 6:9-10]. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. [Matthew 24:14]. What do these verses all have in common? KINGDOM. The KINGDOM of God! Guys, when we die, God wants us to be with him in his Kingdom. Matthew 4:17, Jesus is coming back, the Kingdom is almost here! He wants us to be ready! Matthew 6:10, I just love this verse. I think it's so important to not think about what we want, and what pleases us, but to think about what God, your Father, wants and what pleases Him. That's key. Matthew 24:14, people won't always believe in something until they see it. Until there's proof. That, unfortunately, or maybe fortunately at times, includes God. A testimony, your testimony, could be the thing that saves a person. When they see what God has done in your life, they'll believe. They'll want what you have. So amazing. Chris shared his testimony, and it's a good example of what God does for the people who love him. I'm not going to share it, because I would butcher it terribly, and because you're probably getting tired of reading this by now anyways, but I thank you for taking the time to experience what God has done for me this weekend. He talked about foundation. I had just the word foundation written down, so I don't know exactly what he was talking about. When I think of foundation, I think of the story in the bible with the man who built his house on sand and the man who built his house on rock. Foundation is key. If you don't have a good foundation with God, you'll crumble, just like the house that was built on the sand. You can find that story in Matthew 7 I think.
(As you read this, keep in mind that I just had 3 DAYS of mind blowing, God filled experiences, so I encourage you to keep reading, not because I want people to read this blog, but because I'm hoping that maybe, just maybe, I'll be able to touch some one's heart.)
Ok, so as I was looking over my notes, I decided to put this into three parts (Day one, two and three) because there's a bunch of stuff here, and that way if you want to take a breather and keep reading later, you can.
Blessings,
Ariel
November 11, 2010
Lost
So, as you know, I've been struggling quite a bit lately. I wanted to share this story:
At LDP, we were at Mission Point. We heard the crucifixion story from a different point of view. Then we were told to write on a piece of paper something that we wanted to give to God. I'm not going to share what I wrote, because it's very personal. After, we nailed that thing to the cross. We went outside and took turns carrying the cross, over this island. It was beautiful. It started to rain and thunder. I was crying by this time, I looked around me, and saw the water crashing against the shore, and the green trees and grass, and this wide open space, and heard the thunder and felt the rain. It was all so overwhelming. There's only one man that I know who could put together something SO amazing. So perfect. We stopped at one point, and we were told that Jesus is still alive! I had never thought about that before. We were told that he died on the cross so that we didn't have to, he wants to take our burdens, he wants to carry them for us. On our way back down I had my turn to carry the cross. It was handed off to me right before this very steep, rocky part of the island. My thoughts: This is not going to end well. I took the cross, and I started down the rocks. They were slippery from the rain, making it even harder, especially while carrying a very heavy cross. Jesus was so strong guys, I would never be able to endure what he went through. Not in a million years. Of course, I slipped. But here's the thing: A least five different hands reached out to help me when they saw me fall. They helped me back up. They didn't want to see me fail.
That's so big, you guys. When I think of what we should be doing as followers of Christ, I think of that moment. Be there for someone when they fall, and help them back up. That day, there was nothing but support. Nothing but love.
I thought of that moment a lot these past few days. I fell. But, when people had seen that I had fallen, they reached out, and helped me up. They didn't want to see me fall. Luke 15:11-32 says:
11 Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.
13 “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. 14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.
17 “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ 20 So he got up and went to his father.
“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
21 “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.
25 “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 27 ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’
28 “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29 But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’
31 “‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”
I love that passage. That's what made me willing to fight again. Someone had mentioned Luke 15 to me, so I decided to read it. Man, God is good. So good. I feel like the son in this story. I've come home to my daddy, and he's so happy to be with me again. Amazing. I don't deserve it at all, but I'm so glad that I have it.
Blessings,
Ariel
At LDP, we were at Mission Point. We heard the crucifixion story from a different point of view. Then we were told to write on a piece of paper something that we wanted to give to God. I'm not going to share what I wrote, because it's very personal. After, we nailed that thing to the cross. We went outside and took turns carrying the cross, over this island. It was beautiful. It started to rain and thunder. I was crying by this time, I looked around me, and saw the water crashing against the shore, and the green trees and grass, and this wide open space, and heard the thunder and felt the rain. It was all so overwhelming. There's only one man that I know who could put together something SO amazing. So perfect. We stopped at one point, and we were told that Jesus is still alive! I had never thought about that before. We were told that he died on the cross so that we didn't have to, he wants to take our burdens, he wants to carry them for us. On our way back down I had my turn to carry the cross. It was handed off to me right before this very steep, rocky part of the island. My thoughts: This is not going to end well. I took the cross, and I started down the rocks. They were slippery from the rain, making it even harder, especially while carrying a very heavy cross. Jesus was so strong guys, I would never be able to endure what he went through. Not in a million years. Of course, I slipped. But here's the thing: A least five different hands reached out to help me when they saw me fall. They helped me back up. They didn't want to see me fail.
That's so big, you guys. When I think of what we should be doing as followers of Christ, I think of that moment. Be there for someone when they fall, and help them back up. That day, there was nothing but support. Nothing but love.
I thought of that moment a lot these past few days. I fell. But, when people had seen that I had fallen, they reached out, and helped me up. They didn't want to see me fall. Luke 15:11-32 says:
11 Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.
13 “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. 14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.
17 “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ 20 So he got up and went to his father.
“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
21 “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.
25 “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 27 ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’
28 “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29 But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’
31 “‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”
I love that passage. That's what made me willing to fight again. Someone had mentioned Luke 15 to me, so I decided to read it. Man, God is good. So good. I feel like the son in this story. I've come home to my daddy, and he's so happy to be with me again. Amazing. I don't deserve it at all, but I'm so glad that I have it.
Blessings,
Ariel
November 9, 2010
Restless (Mattie Montgomery)
What is my destiny? What is God's plan for me? Who was I made to be?
Now, these are questions that are in every one's heart. As Christians, we throw around this concept of warfare or contention without ever establishing a goal or an ultimate purpose. We must have vision of a higher calling than simply resisting sin. If what it means to be devoted to the gospel of Jesus Christ is to get up on Sunday mornings, and to do your best not to say a couple of cuss words, then you've missed it. We must catch God's vision of what it truly means to struggle for the sake of Christ and for the establishment of the kingdom of Heaven. Isaiah 62 says, "You who call on the name of the Lord give yourselves no rest, and give him no rest until he establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth." And so what are we fighting for? To see the body of Christ, the church, establish to the outside world as a shelter from this hell on earth. What does it mean if you pastor a church of a hundred thousand people, but there is still no hope for a pregnant teenage girl in your city. And what does it mean, if people are coming from all over to your meetings if suicide is still devastating our generation and over 33 million people are dying from aids right now. Listen to what I'm about to say to you: The only reason we live in a fallen world is because we live in a fallen culture, but take heart, because cultures can be changed. All creation groans in anticipation for the sons of God to be revealed. Creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glory's freedom of the children of God. Romans 8 says that creation itself will be brought unto the glory's freedom of the children of God. On the cross, when the wrath of God was satisfied, Jesus Christ established for us sons-ship in heaven. We are now divine beings, heirs to the thrown of God and all creation has been groaning in anticipation of that moment. In the name of Jesus Christ, under the authority of Father God and the leading of his Holy Spirit, I declare that my generation will exercise authority over creation. Over cancer, over aids, over natural disasters, and over death itself. We will stand firm in who we are as children of the most high God. And we operate under an ancient authority to the end of injustice. All creation has come together for this single moment! For this time, to watch, and to wait, to hold it's breath in anticipation, to see what will come of your time here on earth. To see if in your days you will align yourself with destiny and God and with your inheritance of holiness, because if you do, if you can, you will unleash a tide of hope that will sweep across our generation and that will change everything forever. All creation will be restored to glory, and the twinkling of an eye, like a thief in the night, black will become white, and up will become down. The servant of all will be made the greatest, and the ? of a slave will receive the reward of his suffering. And as he reigns, in justice and righteousness forever, that you will be at his side. Restless ones, arise! Take your place in a new paradigm of restlessness. Will God not bring justice for those of his elect for those who cry out to him, day and night? And so we cry out, saying, God, send your spirit, God, send it out for us, God send us as the end of injustice.
This sermon is by Mattie Montgomery of the band For Today. I've been really struggling, ready to give up. There are only two people in my life who know how much I am actually struggling, and if it wasn't for them, I would have given up a long, long time ago. He says that we need to see what it truly is to struggle for Christ's sake. I always thought, that if I was persecuted in a different country, or questioned about God, that I would stand firm in my faith. But this past week, I've realized that I've still got a lot of work to do. If I was like the people in the Bible who went through so much hardship, I would have given up. I don't know how they did it. I really don't. So that's what I need prayer for this week. To not give up. Because right now, right at this moment, I'm hanging on by a thread, and I don't know how much longer it's gonna be before I fall.
November 6, 2010
Epic
Oh boy, guys! If any of you read my status's, blog posts, my mind or have seen me during the past two days, you know what tonight was. THE YC RALLY!!!! Yeahhhh man! So good. I'm giddy. Wow, I have not been this happy in so long. And life just keeps getting better, next weekend I get to go on a youth retreat!!
This concert, was absolutely amazing. The Letter Black started, epic. Epic. That girl can sing! And scream! I loved every bit of it! They are so so so good live! Plus she had a lot of sparkles :) And then Seventh Day Slumber came on. Oh man. So good. They had light up drums, smoke machines, and an awesome lights show! Craaaaazy! (If you haven't already noticed, not all my blog posts come out as meaningful as others, the meaningful ones come when I'm super mad. These type, come when I'm just enjoying life!) I swear there's still gonna be smoke in the church tomorrow. Then the lead singer (Joseph) started talking about all of these letters he had received. About a kids parents splitting up, about cutting, about suicide, just about everything. It was heartbreaking to hear all of this. Everyone always knows that it happens, but when you hear it, it becomes real. Then he told us his testimony. Amazing. His life started out so rough. He almost killed himself, and on that night, he gave himself to Jesus. Amazing what God can do. God is using him. A guy that didn't used to believe in Him. Makes me wonder how God's going to use me. After the concert, we went out to the front of the church. I had bought one of The Letter Black's t-shirts before the concert. I got them to sign my journal (because it's one of my favorite things) and I got a picture with them :) Then I got SDS to sign my journal. My auntie got their poster, so she asked me to get it signed for her. Then my brother and cousin got The Letter Black's CD so I had to go get that signed for them too. Haha, lame sauce! It was cool though :) The second time I went up to The Letter Black, I asked Sarah (the lead singer) what her tattoos meant to her. She told me one was her anniversary, one said Respect because it says in the Bible to respect your spouse, and she doesn't think people take that seriously enough, and on her left wrist going over to her right wrist was her favorite verse "Be still and know that I am God". Such a cool girl. I told her about my tattoo idea. Legit conversation. Loved it!
It was just an awesome night all around. I rededicated myself to Jesus! I wasn't even going to go to the rally at the start of this week, so I could babysit. God obviously wanted me to go. I have no doubt in my mind about that. I love how letting him steer your life takes you to crazy, awesome, amazing places.
Blessings,
Ariel
This concert, was absolutely amazing. The Letter Black started, epic. Epic. That girl can sing! And scream! I loved every bit of it! They are so so so good live! Plus she had a lot of sparkles :) And then Seventh Day Slumber came on. Oh man. So good. They had light up drums, smoke machines, and an awesome lights show! Craaaaazy! (If you haven't already noticed, not all my blog posts come out as meaningful as others, the meaningful ones come when I'm super mad. These type, come when I'm just enjoying life!) I swear there's still gonna be smoke in the church tomorrow. Then the lead singer (Joseph) started talking about all of these letters he had received. About a kids parents splitting up, about cutting, about suicide, just about everything. It was heartbreaking to hear all of this. Everyone always knows that it happens, but when you hear it, it becomes real. Then he told us his testimony. Amazing. His life started out so rough. He almost killed himself, and on that night, he gave himself to Jesus. Amazing what God can do. God is using him. A guy that didn't used to believe in Him. Makes me wonder how God's going to use me. After the concert, we went out to the front of the church. I had bought one of The Letter Black's t-shirts before the concert. I got them to sign my journal (because it's one of my favorite things) and I got a picture with them :) Then I got SDS to sign my journal. My auntie got their poster, so she asked me to get it signed for her. Then my brother and cousin got The Letter Black's CD so I had to go get that signed for them too. Haha, lame sauce! It was cool though :) The second time I went up to The Letter Black, I asked Sarah (the lead singer) what her tattoos meant to her. She told me one was her anniversary, one said Respect because it says in the Bible to respect your spouse, and she doesn't think people take that seriously enough, and on her left wrist going over to her right wrist was her favorite verse "Be still and know that I am God". Such a cool girl. I told her about my tattoo idea. Legit conversation. Loved it!
It was just an awesome night all around. I rededicated myself to Jesus! I wasn't even going to go to the rally at the start of this week, so I could babysit. God obviously wanted me to go. I have no doubt in my mind about that. I love how letting him steer your life takes you to crazy, awesome, amazing places.
Blessings,
Ariel
November 5, 2010
Life is Good
Okay guys, if I don't share this, I'm going to burst with excitement! And no matter how much some of you might like to see that, I'd rather not explode. (If you would like some excitement though, put some mentos and diet coke in your mouth and see what happens, and then tell me! :) )
First of all, tomorrow is the YC Rally!!!! The Letter Black and Seventh Day Slumber are coming to MORDEN of all places!!!! Eeeeep!! So, so, so excited! I think I have a new found addiction to The Letter Black. It's kind of like the band Skillet (whom I am also addicted to) but the girl is the lead singer instead of the boy. So good. I'm so excited to be able to have a half-way-to-YC-experience! Haha, after YC, your radio tends to suck. It just doesn't give the same effect of a live concert: speakers 2 inches away from your ears, jumping, screaming, singing along, seeing them in person. It's great!
Secondly, travel club!!! Dude, I went out of the province for the first time this summer, and now, in 2012, I'll get to go to a whole new country, not to mention continent!!! Epic! The one I'm hoping for is Paris and Rome. We'll get to see the Trevi Fountain, the Leaning Tower of Pisa and the Eiffle Tower. The Eiffle Tower!! Oh, I'm so excited right now. But, the price is through the roof. Guess who's getting a job! The total price will probably come close to $3000 plus spending money. Oh boy. Wish me luck!
Blessings,
Ariel
November 2, 2010
Puppet Strings
I feel very trapped. Not sure what to do anymore. I'm tired of the mascara running down my face and the hurt. So I'm coming to you guys, for prayers. I feel like I don't have control over my life anymore. I'm not a teenager. I don't get to have fun. I wanted to go to probably the best concert that Morden will ever have, that I've been looking forward to for over a month, and now I can't. Because I'm a "good person". I'm babysitting that evening because I felt bad that the person I babysit for would have to find someone else. I guess that's my choice. But I feel like I can't do anything but babysit anymore. Don't get me wrong, I love hanging out with this kid. But it's nice to be able to have fun with my friends once in a while, you know? I can't hang out with one of my best friends on Wednesday like we have every Wednesday for the past month because my parents don't want to feed one extra person and because apparently I don't do what I'm supposed to when she's over. Yeah right. I did so. I feel like I'm not supposed to be happy. And I'm sick of it. I'm tired of being inbetween adult and child. Being a teenager is so stupid. No freedom, but we're supposed to be responsible. I feel very very lost right now, and I don't know what to do anymore. If you have any bible verses that you think I should read, please let me know. Please pray, I need strength and guidance right now. I'm not going to give up. Love you guys.
Ariel
Ariel
November 1, 2010
Plastic Makes Perfect?
So, I was playing barbies with this little girl that I was babysitting. I started thinking (way too much, as per usual), why do we live in a world where plastic makes perfect? Of course they can't make what we see as "ugly" barbies. They can't make plus sized barbies, they can make them with no makeup, they can't make ones with frizzy hair, they can't make short ones, they can't have even the littlest imperfection or we won't buy them. Because they're not pretty enough. A barbie always has long, blonde hair, a heart shaped face, skinny arms, a long neck, a thin, toned stomach, perfectly sized hips and boobs, thin-but-not-too-thin thighs, toned calves, perfectly sized feet, pink lips, white teeth, perfect smile, clear skin, long eyelashes, eye shadow, intense eyes and perfectly shaped eyebrows. Honestly?! Who looks like that?? We're taught from such a young age that Barbie looks perfect, and that's what every one's supposed to look like. I don't look anywhere close to that! My hair never behaves, my stomach isn't that toned, my curves aren't what we see as "average", my legs look funny, my feet are too big, my lips are chapped, my teeth aren't sparkling, my smile looks goofy, my eyelashes take work in the morning, as does my eye shadow, my eyebrows are just there. I'm nothing special. BUT, that's how God made me! I'm nothing special, but I AM beautiful. And if you want to tell me any different, then don't let the door hit ya on the way out.
I hate how fake this world is. I'm incredibly fake too. "How are you?" someone asks me, "Fine." is my reply. I'm always "fine" even when I'm not. That's fake. I've dyed my hair, that's fake. I wear makeup. That's fake too. I have my ears pierced in 2 different places. That's fake. I wear high heels. That's fake. I wear a smile when all I want to do is cry. That's fake too.
Now, some of these things I do to make myself feel good about me. If I didn't wear makeup I would feel SO ugly every day. I hate how I look without it. Even when people tell me that I don't look any different, I look in the mirror and start to cry because of how ugly I look. Getting my ears pierced the first time was because I loved earrings. The second time was because I liked the way it looked, everyone had their ears pierced, but not everyone had their cartilage done. I felt unique. Like a bit of a rebel I guess. I wore heels for fun. It's fun to feel dressed up and different once in a while. Oh, and tattoos are fake too. I'm gonna get all tattooed up!
I'm going to get one on my whole back, I'm so excited! It's going to represent God. How I know him. I get new ideas for it every day. It's going to be a beach scene, with sand and water and grass, half of the sky clear and half of it a storm. I love nature, it's so beautiful. God made it so perfect! The storm scene isn't all that you think, yes it represents the bad times, and the clear sky represents the good, but the storm also represents God listening and talking to me. When I was at Mission Point with WBC I was praying and every time I finished a thought, it thundered. So I said, OK God, if you're hearing me, if you're really listening, please make it thunder. And right then it thundered. I love sharing that moment with people. I want to have a butterfly flying up to the sky, because I was having a really bad day, I was at horses that week and I rode my horse and prayed and it was amazing. I saw a butterfly. Butterflies are signs of hope. I want to have a cross, because if I asked Jesus how much he loved me, he would stretch out his arms and say "this much" and die on the cross. He loved me enough to die for me. I also want to have 2 sets of footprints and the start of the beach, and then one set continuing. The reason for that is this poem:
One night a man had a dream. He dreamed
he was walking along the beach with the LORD.
Across the sky flashed scenes from his life.
For each scene he noticed two sets of
footprints in the sand: one belonging
to him, and the other to the LORD.
When the last scene of his life flashed before him,
he looked back at the footprints in the sand.
He noticed that many times along the path of
his life there was only one set of footprints.
He also noticed that it happened at the very
lowest and saddest times in his life.
This really bothered him and he
questioned the LORD about it:
"LORD, you said that once I decided to follow
you, you'd walk with me all the way.
But I have noticed that during the most
troublesome times in my life,
there is only one set of footprints.
I don't understand why when
I needed you most you would leave me."
The LORD replied:
"My son, my precious child,
I love you and I would never leave you.
During your times of trial and suffering,
when you see only one set of footprints,
it was then that I carried you."
Guys, he loves us SO much! At the bottom of the scene, I want the words : "Jeremiah 29:11" (For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.) written. This tattoo is going to be everything God has shown me. Everything he's given me. Every little piece of hope.
I've been kind of sad the past few days. More than anything in this world, I want a hug from the one man who can't give it to me right now. It breaks my heart. I just want him to come and be with me and hug me and love me. And I know he does, but I want to be able to see him, touch him. I can't wait for that day.
I hate how fake this world is. I'm incredibly fake too. "How are you?" someone asks me, "Fine." is my reply. I'm always "fine" even when I'm not. That's fake. I've dyed my hair, that's fake. I wear makeup. That's fake too. I have my ears pierced in 2 different places. That's fake. I wear high heels. That's fake. I wear a smile when all I want to do is cry. That's fake too.
Now, some of these things I do to make myself feel good about me. If I didn't wear makeup I would feel SO ugly every day. I hate how I look without it. Even when people tell me that I don't look any different, I look in the mirror and start to cry because of how ugly I look. Getting my ears pierced the first time was because I loved earrings. The second time was because I liked the way it looked, everyone had their ears pierced, but not everyone had their cartilage done. I felt unique. Like a bit of a rebel I guess. I wore heels for fun. It's fun to feel dressed up and different once in a while. Oh, and tattoos are fake too. I'm gonna get all tattooed up!
I'm going to get one on my whole back, I'm so excited! It's going to represent God. How I know him. I get new ideas for it every day. It's going to be a beach scene, with sand and water and grass, half of the sky clear and half of it a storm. I love nature, it's so beautiful. God made it so perfect! The storm scene isn't all that you think, yes it represents the bad times, and the clear sky represents the good, but the storm also represents God listening and talking to me. When I was at Mission Point with WBC I was praying and every time I finished a thought, it thundered. So I said, OK God, if you're hearing me, if you're really listening, please make it thunder. And right then it thundered. I love sharing that moment with people. I want to have a butterfly flying up to the sky, because I was having a really bad day, I was at horses that week and I rode my horse and prayed and it was amazing. I saw a butterfly. Butterflies are signs of hope. I want to have a cross, because if I asked Jesus how much he loved me, he would stretch out his arms and say "this much" and die on the cross. He loved me enough to die for me. I also want to have 2 sets of footprints and the start of the beach, and then one set continuing. The reason for that is this poem:
One night a man had a dream. He dreamed
he was walking along the beach with the LORD.
Across the sky flashed scenes from his life.
For each scene he noticed two sets of
footprints in the sand: one belonging
to him, and the other to the LORD.
When the last scene of his life flashed before him,
he looked back at the footprints in the sand.
He noticed that many times along the path of
his life there was only one set of footprints.
He also noticed that it happened at the very
lowest and saddest times in his life.
This really bothered him and he
questioned the LORD about it:
"LORD, you said that once I decided to follow
you, you'd walk with me all the way.
But I have noticed that during the most
troublesome times in my life,
there is only one set of footprints.
I don't understand why when
I needed you most you would leave me."
The LORD replied:
"My son, my precious child,
I love you and I would never leave you.
During your times of trial and suffering,
when you see only one set of footprints,
it was then that I carried you."
Guys, he loves us SO much! At the bottom of the scene, I want the words : "Jeremiah 29:11" (For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.) written. This tattoo is going to be everything God has shown me. Everything he's given me. Every little piece of hope.
I've been kind of sad the past few days. More than anything in this world, I want a hug from the one man who can't give it to me right now. It breaks my heart. I just want him to come and be with me and hug me and love me. And I know he does, but I want to be able to see him, touch him. I can't wait for that day.
October 27, 2010
Pray
Okay guys, I'm in need of some serious prayer. I've been in kind of a funk lately, for lack of a better way to put it. I've just had these really weird emotions. And I don't like it, at all. I've been having a very hard time focusing on anything, I've been very, very happy lately (which is strange for me), but at the same time I feel very, very sad or upset about something. I have no idea what's bringing this on!
I think that satan knows that God's going to use me, and that he is using me, and that I'm changing, and he hates that. I LOVE that satan hates me! If he hates what I'm doing and who I am, that's a mission accomplished. It's definitely a mutual hate though. I could never ever begin to describe the hate I feel for satan. Just like I could never describe the feeling of love I have for God. It's just crazy. Think about this: God designed you before you were born. He knew who you were going to be, and he made you exactly how he wanted you. I wish that I knew what God wanted me to do. I wish we could hear an audible voice telling us what the heck we're supposed to do. Would make life much easier, eh? I just find it so awesome that God designed every single thing about me. And that he loves me, even when I feel like no one else does. Ah! Can't even begin to describe the happiness I feel when I think about Him.
But anyways, please pray that in the name of Jesus Christ, satan will leave me alone. He has no place in my life. He has no right to bring me down.
Thanks guys!
Blessings,
Ariel
I think that satan knows that God's going to use me, and that he is using me, and that I'm changing, and he hates that. I LOVE that satan hates me! If he hates what I'm doing and who I am, that's a mission accomplished. It's definitely a mutual hate though. I could never ever begin to describe the hate I feel for satan. Just like I could never describe the feeling of love I have for God. It's just crazy. Think about this: God designed you before you were born. He knew who you were going to be, and he made you exactly how he wanted you. I wish that I knew what God wanted me to do. I wish we could hear an audible voice telling us what the heck we're supposed to do. Would make life much easier, eh? I just find it so awesome that God designed every single thing about me. And that he loves me, even when I feel like no one else does. Ah! Can't even begin to describe the happiness I feel when I think about Him.
But anyways, please pray that in the name of Jesus Christ, satan will leave me alone. He has no place in my life. He has no right to bring me down.
Thanks guys!
Blessings,
Ariel
October 26, 2010
The Plan
Ok guys, big, BIG plans for this coming year! First, I want to thank all of you who read my blog. I figured out that facebook groups is a really cool way to get my blog out there, and now more people are connecting with me, which is really cool. But, I want to make it very clear that I'm not trying to become some type of mini celebrity by having people 'like' my blog on facebook. Honestly, I was simply curious who all read it, and this way people will be more connected with my blog instead of having to read all of my statuses (I know there's a lot) to find out when there's a new one.
Okay, drum roll please! (Not joking, hit your desk, tap a pencil, something! This is supposed to be dramatic, people! :) ) I have HUGE plans for this year! I'm definitely trying to raise the bar for young people. Kendra Penner (Kendra Dawn on facebook) and I have a one year plan. Our ultimate goal is to put on a concert with possibly The Letter Black or a different band, all depending on research and time, we want to make and sell t-shirts supporting our cause, and have other stuff to sell too.
Now, I know you're wondering what this cause is, and I'm glad :) Kendra and I are really passionate about helping end human trafficking. Have you ever heard of drug trafficking? Selling drugs. Human trafficking is just that, but selling humans for sex.
Some quick facts:
27 MILLION (not 270, 2700, or 27000, that's 27,000,000!) people are held in slavery worldwide
Human trafficking is growing faster than drugs or weapons
Every 30 SECONDS another person becomes a victim of human trafficking
Children as young as 4 are sex slaves
Girls are forced to service up to 40 men a day
This is crazy. It has to stop. No one should have to go through this, I wouldn't wish this upon my worst enemy. Think about this, kids as young as 4 years old are having sex with 40 men a day, no choice what so ever. If a girl becomes pregnant and has a baby, they take it away from her so that when they're older, they can be used for sex too. This isn't right, you guys. Not even maybe.
Mine and Kendra's mission is to raise awareness for this. I've talked about living under a rock, once we're done, no one will be under a rock when it comes to human trafficking.
I invite everyone who reads this blog to help, if you feel called to. You can email me at xo_arial_xo@hotmail.com or facebook me. We're going to do a bunch of fundraisers for one year to raise money for the big event. I'd love to hear your ideas for what we could do for fundraisers! Also, if you have any ideas for what types of things we could put on the t-shirts (besides Lyle's picture ;) Lyle, I hope you read this post) give me a shout! I'm open to anything.
The costs are going to be pretty big for two 15 year old girls who don't have jobs. The Letter Black costs an average of $2500 to bring out, plus flights. T-shirts and other accessories I haven't looked up yet, but will soon. The cost of renting the Rec Center would likely be around $500. So we're probably looking at a minimum of $3500 for this event.
Please don't be afraid to contact me!
Blessings,
Okay, drum roll please! (Not joking, hit your desk, tap a pencil, something! This is supposed to be dramatic, people! :) ) I have HUGE plans for this year! I'm definitely trying to raise the bar for young people. Kendra Penner (Kendra Dawn on facebook) and I have a one year plan. Our ultimate goal is to put on a concert with possibly The Letter Black or a different band, all depending on research and time, we want to make and sell t-shirts supporting our cause, and have other stuff to sell too.
Now, I know you're wondering what this cause is, and I'm glad :) Kendra and I are really passionate about helping end human trafficking. Have you ever heard of drug trafficking? Selling drugs. Human trafficking is just that, but selling humans for sex.
Some quick facts:
27 MILLION (not 270, 2700, or 27000, that's 27,000,000!) people are held in slavery worldwide
Human trafficking is growing faster than drugs or weapons
Every 30 SECONDS another person becomes a victim of human trafficking
Children as young as 4 are sex slaves
Girls are forced to service up to 40 men a day
This is crazy. It has to stop. No one should have to go through this, I wouldn't wish this upon my worst enemy. Think about this, kids as young as 4 years old are having sex with 40 men a day, no choice what so ever. If a girl becomes pregnant and has a baby, they take it away from her so that when they're older, they can be used for sex too. This isn't right, you guys. Not even maybe.
Mine and Kendra's mission is to raise awareness for this. I've talked about living under a rock, once we're done, no one will be under a rock when it comes to human trafficking.
I invite everyone who reads this blog to help, if you feel called to. You can email me at xo_arial_xo@hotmail.com or facebook me. We're going to do a bunch of fundraisers for one year to raise money for the big event. I'd love to hear your ideas for what we could do for fundraisers! Also, if you have any ideas for what types of things we could put on the t-shirts (besides Lyle's picture ;) Lyle, I hope you read this post) give me a shout! I'm open to anything.
The costs are going to be pretty big for two 15 year old girls who don't have jobs. The Letter Black costs an average of $2500 to bring out, plus flights. T-shirts and other accessories I haven't looked up yet, but will soon. The cost of renting the Rec Center would likely be around $500. So we're probably looking at a minimum of $3500 for this event.
Please don't be afraid to contact me!
Blessings,
Ariel
October 24, 2010
Voice
I've been putting off writing again. My thoughts are a big mess. I have no idea what I want to say, but I'm just going to write and hope that the words come out the way they're supposed to. I've thought a lot about what to write in the past little while. But I kept putting off actually doing it. Don't know why. I can't even explain the feeling that I have right now.
I've been thinking, this blog is the only way I have a voice. At school I can talk, but no one cares. No one listens. If I tried getting up in front of a crowd and speaking with such passion that I imagine myself speaking with, it wouldn't work. I'd stutter, and be embarrassed and completely forget what I was going to say. But, oh I can imagine speaking in front of a crowd. With passion. Burning passion. No mistakes, and people just listening. Taking it all in. I wish I could do that. I know that I could make a difference with my words. But yet, this is the only way I have a voice. Honestly, I feel trapped inside myself. I have a million thoughts just screaming to get out when I'm around people, and I know what I want to say, but I can't find the words to say it. This is a problem. It has been for a while.
I feel like shrinking and hiding from the rest of the world because I feel that my words aren't being heard. That's why I like talking to God. When I talk to him I feel like he's actually listening to me. And when he asks me how I'm doing, he's actually asking me how I'm doing. He's not just trying to start a conversation, he actually wants to know. What happened?! Why is it, that when we ask someone "How are you?" that we expect them to say "Good." no matter what? What if they're not good? What if they're hurting, and we just brush by them? Unaware. Not caring. What if all that person wants is to be heard and loved? It's so simple! If we can't listen to them, and show them love, then what can we do? Those are two of the most simple things on earth! All you have to do, is shut your mouth, and open your heart.
You know, it's not all the time, but sometimes when I pray, when I'm really hurting, I can feel God's presence. He's there, with me. He wants to be there for me. He's the only one that would come be with me at the drop of a hat when I need him. Why do we search and search and search for people who will listen and be with us when we're hurting, when we already have it. Man, God's just waiting there, with his arms wide open, just wanting to hug you and comfort you and tell you, with all honesty, It's going to be okay.
It is going to be okay. People don't realize the power their words have. Physical and emotional pain are all brought on by people. NOT GOD. Listen to me: GOD DOES NOT WANT TO HURT YOU. That is all humans hurting you. It makes me so sad, that people think it's God hurting them. When a little boy gets hit by his daddy, was that God hitting him? No, that was human. When a girl gets teased by her friends, being told that she's not pretty enough, she's not smart enough, she's not good enough, is that God telling her that she's not good enough? No, that's human.
I struggle with this a lot. Self worth. I hate it, with a passion, when people tell me that I'm beautiful. By all means, tell me that my hair looks nice or that you like my shirt. But don't you dare tell me that I'm beautiful. Because it's not true. You're lying.
People get mad at me for thinking that. But honestly, I've spent my whole life telling myself that I'm not good enough. It's my comfort zone. When people tell me that I'm beautiful, or that I'm worth it, it makes me so uncomfortable.
So why am I sharing all this? Honestly, I don't know. I don't know why I'm typing all of this or why I'm letting anyone into my personal thoughts, but I am. I'm just hoping that by doing this, by writing, that I'll have a voice. Maybe I'll help someone? I don't know. I don't know why you read this. I don't know who reads this. I don't know. I don't know...
Please, if you get anything out of this blog, out of what I'm saying, please, please, contact me. I don't want to be aimlessly writing. Inbox me on facebook. Email me (xo_arial_xo@hotmail.com). Tell me why you read this. Because I want to have a voice. I don't want to quit.
Blessings, Ariel
[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VtEHU5bFbb4 watch this video, you are a treasure!]
I've been thinking, this blog is the only way I have a voice. At school I can talk, but no one cares. No one listens. If I tried getting up in front of a crowd and speaking with such passion that I imagine myself speaking with, it wouldn't work. I'd stutter, and be embarrassed and completely forget what I was going to say. But, oh I can imagine speaking in front of a crowd. With passion. Burning passion. No mistakes, and people just listening. Taking it all in. I wish I could do that. I know that I could make a difference with my words. But yet, this is the only way I have a voice. Honestly, I feel trapped inside myself. I have a million thoughts just screaming to get out when I'm around people, and I know what I want to say, but I can't find the words to say it. This is a problem. It has been for a while.
I feel like shrinking and hiding from the rest of the world because I feel that my words aren't being heard. That's why I like talking to God. When I talk to him I feel like he's actually listening to me. And when he asks me how I'm doing, he's actually asking me how I'm doing. He's not just trying to start a conversation, he actually wants to know. What happened?! Why is it, that when we ask someone "How are you?" that we expect them to say "Good." no matter what? What if they're not good? What if they're hurting, and we just brush by them? Unaware. Not caring. What if all that person wants is to be heard and loved? It's so simple! If we can't listen to them, and show them love, then what can we do? Those are two of the most simple things on earth! All you have to do, is shut your mouth, and open your heart.
You know, it's not all the time, but sometimes when I pray, when I'm really hurting, I can feel God's presence. He's there, with me. He wants to be there for me. He's the only one that would come be with me at the drop of a hat when I need him. Why do we search and search and search for people who will listen and be with us when we're hurting, when we already have it. Man, God's just waiting there, with his arms wide open, just wanting to hug you and comfort you and tell you, with all honesty, It's going to be okay.
It is going to be okay. People don't realize the power their words have. Physical and emotional pain are all brought on by people. NOT GOD. Listen to me: GOD DOES NOT WANT TO HURT YOU. That is all humans hurting you. It makes me so sad, that people think it's God hurting them. When a little boy gets hit by his daddy, was that God hitting him? No, that was human. When a girl gets teased by her friends, being told that she's not pretty enough, she's not smart enough, she's not good enough, is that God telling her that she's not good enough? No, that's human.
I struggle with this a lot. Self worth. I hate it, with a passion, when people tell me that I'm beautiful. By all means, tell me that my hair looks nice or that you like my shirt. But don't you dare tell me that I'm beautiful. Because it's not true. You're lying.
People get mad at me for thinking that. But honestly, I've spent my whole life telling myself that I'm not good enough. It's my comfort zone. When people tell me that I'm beautiful, or that I'm worth it, it makes me so uncomfortable.
So why am I sharing all this? Honestly, I don't know. I don't know why I'm typing all of this or why I'm letting anyone into my personal thoughts, but I am. I'm just hoping that by doing this, by writing, that I'll have a voice. Maybe I'll help someone? I don't know. I don't know why you read this. I don't know who reads this. I don't know. I don't know...
Please, if you get anything out of this blog, out of what I'm saying, please, please, contact me. I don't want to be aimlessly writing. Inbox me on facebook. Email me (xo_arial_xo@hotmail.com). Tell me why you read this. Because I want to have a voice. I don't want to quit.
Blessings, Ariel
[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VtEHU5bFbb4 watch this video, you are a treasure!]
October 17, 2010
Mattie Montgomery (Vocalist Of For Today) - Joshua
*This sermon is by Mattie Montgomery of For Today. I always listen to the sermons, but I find it easier to focus on them when the words are right there in front of me. Please listen to the voice while you read the words, and really take it to heart.
ARISE! WAKE UP! BROTHERS AND SISTERS! IT IS TIME FOR OUR GENERATION TO WAKE UP AND STEP INTO DESTINY!
Our generation has been wandering in the desert for far too long. For too long we have had the leadership and the vision necessary to enter into our true destiny, but our inaction has kept us stranded. Or our deception of self sufficiency has kept us stranded. I believe that just like Moses in the Bible there has been a few people in our father's generation that have laboured and toiled in a place of prayer and fasting. People who have walked with God and talked with God. People who have truly confronted the established order of this world and declared that we will have freedom no matter what the cost. And because of that, we as a generation are standing at the threshold of a great awakening in the church that will electrify our spirits and will ignite a fire that will consume our planet. But now God has spoken to me, and he has said, It's time to enter in, it's time for new leaders, who will rise up under Joshua anointing and who will come into a place of leadership and say, 'We have been waiting for too long.' Now is the time to come into destiny in God's promise. I don't know what it is, but there's something in our DNA, our generational DNA that sets our eyes on eternity and the divine that says, I'm coming for it. I'm coming for all of it. And nothing and no one can stop me. There's a new sort of aggression in our generation, a new desperation. Something that God has built into us that forces us to run after Him. And to abandon everything that hinders us because we know it's how we were made. We know that He is all we need for real. And we value Him above all else. God is calling forth leaders like Caleb who will silence the groaning and fearful weeping of the assembly and declare, this ? is exceedingly good. Do not fear the giants in the land. Do not fear a billion dollar pornography empire that has been built in our nation. Do not fear the highest suicide rate in the history of man kind, claiming one life every 16 minutes. There are giants in the land, but the Lord is with us. And we declare victory in the name of Jesus. I declare freedom from the bondage of pornography for the young men in our church. I believe there are Joshua generation leaders who have been called by God to lead these people into their destiny. Who are being crippled by this addiction to sexual sin. And to you, I say, NO MORE! NO MORE! If the son who's made you free, then you are free indeed. I see your purity setting a new standard for our generation. Rise up. I declare freedom from the spirit of suicide over our generation. I speak out, the prophets will arise, people who have established a true sort of intimacy with God, such that, when they speak, His words come out.This is what is means to be a prophet. There are people who have surrendered their own voice to take on his. That are sanctified and because of them, when they speak, God speaks. And I declare that they will speak to the walking dead in our streets, and they will see them come to life again. I declare that they will speak to the walking dead in our streets and they will see them come to life again. Oh, brothers and sisters, we've been in the wilderness for too long. Silence the assembly, call the masses, and declare that they may have fortified walls, armor and weapons, but their walls will crumble before us because the Lord God is with us.The whole world may seem to be standing against the advancement of the Kingdom, but greater is he who is in You, than he who is in the world. We may be crippled with sin, or blinded with fear but He's called Jehovah Rapha, the Lord our healer. A refuge in strength. And ever present help in times of trouble, He is our victorious warrior, and we stand behind him, Father God, and declare to a generation, Arise! Take heart, it's time to step into destiny!
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