Healing Begins

Jesus, heal me. Heal the people watching this video. Wrap your arms around them. Love them. Let them feel you.

WWJD

What makes a "Christian"? I honestly hate that label. I hate that label for the same reason that some people hate us. Do you know why people hate us? Because we are a bunch of hypocrites. I really do not think that people who follow Christ have to be perfect in any way, but once you know Christ, your life has to change. God in you will change your life.
Picture this: I've had God in my life for a while, I'm dropping F-bombs all over the place, I'm drinking and partying, I'm disrespectful to the people around me, I disobey the rules set out for me, I'm always showing PDA with my boyfriend, who, by the way, there is a new one every 2 weeks, BUT I read my bible, and I pray, that counts, doesn't it? I pray for God to forgive my sins, but then I go and do it all again. I mean, he's going to forgive me no matter what, right?
Wrong. We, as followers of Christ, need to get our heads out of our butts. There's no more time to be a luke warm Christian!!! There. Is. No. More. Time. Do you understand me? Jesus is coming again! We don't know when, we just know he is. If Jesus came tomorrow, where would you be going? Would he look at you and say, "I love you, I'm proud of you, your work is finished, come be with me forever." Or would he say, "I love you, but I'm disappointed. You didn't listen to me, you listened to the world. You cannot be with me." Think about this. It's not a joke. Claiming to be a "Christian" is not a joke. Yes, everyone makes mistakes. I make tons of them. But God does open my eyes to them, and I realize what I've just done, and it hurts me. There are some sins that are very hard to repent from, and that stupid voice in the back of my head says, "One time won't hurt." But it does. I need to recognize that voice and throw it out of my mind because that is not the voice of God.
So, are you going to go where God's voice leads you, or are you going to go where the world leads you? In every decision you make, you have to decide who's more important: you or God. Who's needs are more important? Who knows best? God, duh. Obviously. But it's hard to shut out the voice of the world. This is something I need to remember, and when I think of it, it helps me millions: WWJD? What would Jesus do? If Jesus wouldn't do it, then more than likely, you shouldn't be doing it either. Now think of this: if Jesus was here in the flesh, standing, sitting, walking, right beside you, would you still make the same choices? Probably not, because he's actually there. But the reality is, he is actually there! He is right beside you, right there with you in every single move you make. Sometimes you can't feel him, and you can't see him, but he is there. Sometimes I do feel him there with me, and that is the most comforting thing. I have felt him sitting beside me, I have felt his arms around me, I have felt him sit down at the end of my bed. No, not completely physically, but I felt his presence, and I knew where he was. I knew what he was doing, whether holding me or listening to me or just watching me. He is incredible, and I wouldn't want to go one step without him. It's a hard thing to do, but who ever said it was going to be easy? It is not going to be easy. I have experienced it first hand.
I'm not trying to be mean, but I am very tired of seeing luke warm Christians. I hurt for you guys, it hurts me to hear what you say, see what you do, yet still claim the name of Christ. I wish that I could just shake you and yell in your ear and make you understand! And I can imagine that God wants to do the same. If ANYONE ever needs/wants to talk, I'm all ears. Email me: xo_arial_xo@hotmail.com. Facebook me: click on the link on the right side of the page, I am the administrator of the facebook page, add me as a friend. Come see me in person. I would love to talk to you guys and maybe even make some new friends in the proccess.
God bless,
Ariel

Sotho

Today was an incredible day, and I can't thank God enough for it. I can't even express everything that happened in text right now, but I sure am going to try! But, if you would like to hear some more stories, please come talk to me in person!!

Okay, so my auntie and uncle feed the homeless in the city quite often, and they invited me to go with. I, being who I am, of course accepted! After the very painful ride there, we got to the location and you could just see people lined up. This wasn't something that I expected. So we all grab some stuff and head in. There was a ton of food donated. The main course was venison stew with a bun and juice or coffee, and for dessert there was cookies, cinnamon buns, and muffins. I started out with buttering buns. Then we heard, "Who wants to help serve food??" My first reaction: YEAH MAN!!! I was pumped! So we go out and bring a plate of food to everyone, they were all ready to eat. If someone came and sat down who hadn't had any food yet, their friends were quick to tell us so that we could get them some stew. After everyone had food, I started serving coffee. It was great because I got to go to all of the tables and ask who wanted coffee and sometimes have a small conversation with the people.
One guy was joking around with me and he told me I was shaking while I was pouring the coffee. We had a good laugh about that. Then another guy asks me why my face is always red. Sigh. We had a good laugh about that though, I told him it was always red, but it did get annoying. He said, "Oh no, you like it, it shows that you're human!" I'm going to remember that. I've always hated the fact that my face turns red, but that one phrase was such a blessing. I got complimented on my necklace quite a few times, that also made me smile.
One guy asked if there was a rag to wipe the table and he asked me to pass him the game of Sorry, so I gave him the game and went to get the rag. I came back and washed the table, and we just started talking. I don't remember how it started, but soon we were talking about how he got shot in the leg and how he had to get a bunch of surgeries. We eventually sat down, and he told me so many stories. About how he used to go hunting, and about when he was in school, he showed me his resume, he talked about his family, he was just the nicest guy. He had such a big smile and such a kind heart. About 15 minutes after we started talking he introduced himself. That made me so happy because it showed me that he trusted me. I feel such incredible love for this man and his wife. He was such a happy guy, but he had such emotion at the same time. He got his kids taken away from him when they were little, and now he doesn't even know what his kids look like. They know where he is, but they never visit. He's never met his grandchildren, he only has one daughter that comes to see him. It breaks my heart, because you can see the hurt in his eyes. You can see the pain. I wish so much that it was different for him and that his family life would be mended. God definitely put him in my life for a reason and I will never forget him. He was so funny, and he taught me things about his culture, his first language is Sotho, which is a native language. I learned how he and his wife met, and how she asked him to marry her! She was so shy, but I did get her talking. Such sweet people. And smart too. He went to college for accounting. It makes me wonder what went wrong that put them out on the streets.
These people, the only thing different about them is that they don't have a place to call home. They don't have somewhere to live and put their things. That's all. They work where ever they can get it, they stay outside in the coldest weathers. They are so incredibly tough, but they still have such emotion. They are definitely some of the coolest people I've ever met. I pray that I was a blessing to them, and I know that they were a blessing to me. I just fell in love with these people, I have a huge heart for them and I can't wait to go back.
This post doesn't even do it justice, so PLEASE, ask me about it in person!
God bless!
Ariel

Hold On

I don't know if you guys realize it, but you have a front row seat in seeing my life, my thoughts. I was talking with a very good friend of mine who I love SO MUCH, you know who you are, and I realized how she knows so much about me. I read a devotion last night about how nothing that happens in your life is a coincidence or has no meaning, because if something is a coincidence, then that means that you don't think that God's in control. He does everything for your good. She is definitely in my life for a reason. All of the people in my life are here for a reason, and I love you guys so much. I am forever grateful for your continual support and open minds and love! Even if I don't know you that well, I am so grateful for you even taking one second out of your day to say hi to me. It does more than you know. I saw a quote yesterday, "You know my name, not my story." This is true for me. Every person who has ever done something to hurt me, and there have been a lot, cuts a little deeper into the forever growing wound. And it hurts me. But what Jesus does is he puts his hand over that wound, and he lets me feel him and he lets me cry out to him and he just listens, and he makes me thirst for him, he makes me want him, and once the wound has healed, he never takes his hand off. He just holds it there, reminding me what he has done in my life. And once I'm done all my crying, he takes my hand in his, and he helps me up, he lifts me up, and he just keeps on holding my hand. I can feel him right beside me, he knows my heart, he knows the pain I've felt, he knows what I feel, he knows everything about me, and he loves me so much. He paid for me because he thought I was that precious. I am battered and bruised but he still thinks that I have worth and that, after he polishes me up a little bit, I'll still work. No, I'm no longer perfect, I've got scratches and pieces missing, but with his help, I can still do my job. Let him show you how much you mean to him, just like he has with me. You just have to say one word. Yes.
God bless,
Ariel

Audacity

"There will be great earthquakes, and there will be famines and plagues in many lands, and there will be terrifying things and great miraculous signs from heaven." -Luke 21:11

Okay, I am so excited for this!!! I believe that God does everything for a reason, and that he can bring good out of any situation. As I'm sure you all know, there was an 8.9 earthquake in Japan last night followed by a tsunami and many, many deaths. And I don't know what God did in other people, but through this event he has already worked in me! There have been so many earthquakes lately, or at least it seems like it to me. Maybe it's because I've been to young to pay attention or maybe it's because God has just made me more aware, but either way, I'm noticing things. God says there are going to be signs, what if these earthquakes and natural disasters are one of those signs? Personally, I'm just waiting for the famines to start and for the anti-Christ to come. I'm ready! Bring it on! One thing that I've realized is that I don't want to be one of those people who says, Well, I've been pretty good, so I'm sure God will let me into heaven. I want to know that I've pleased God and that I've lived my life for him and that I will have done my job on earth and when the time comes, I will go be with my Daddy in heaven. Wake up call, people!! What if we're next? What if we had an earthquake tonight, in five minutes, would you be ready? Where would you go? Who would you trust? What would your last thoughts be? What if you died tonight? I realized that I need to start living, really living, because JESUS IS COMING BACK!!!!!! I have no idea when, but I cannot wait! I am so ready for this! I'm ready to fight for my Jesus because I know that we're going to win. I am so on fire for this. I'm done with the world. I mean, obviously I want to, with all my heart, do God's work here on earth, be his hands and feet while I am here, but if I died next week, I wouldn't care about getting tattoos or going bungee jumping or getting married because I know that God's got it all planned out for my best and that he loves me so much. This is just an incredible time, you guys. Life isn't useless though! God wants as many of his people to join him in heaven as possible! He hasn't forgotten us, you have to realize that. He's just waiting patiently, he's letting us have time to do what we need to do here on earth before ending it for good. He has not, and will never abandon us. Never. If Jesus, who sat in heaven with God, came down to earth and suffered as a human and did the dirty work, the lowest of the low, then why shouldn't we?! It's time to get your hands dirty and start doing God's work, you guys. The time is near. It says it over and over in the bible, so there is no telling when, but Jesus is coming back!
Come Lord Jesus come!!!!!
God bless!
Ariel

The Birdcage

To be honest, I don't even want to classify myself as a "Christian" anymore. I am ashamed to call myself a Christian. Don't get my wrong, I am still 100% following God, with all my heart. But I am completely turned off to the word "Christian". When I think of Christians, I think of hypocrites, I think of people who just want to be perfect and don't care about anyone else and who think that they're all holier than thou just because they read a bible and say a simple prayer before bed. I had someone tell me that I was pathetic for having feelings basically. A Christian who should say "I'll pray for you! Don't give up! God loves you!" or something to that effect. As Christians, we should want to uplift our brothers and sisters, not bring them down. This persons words brought me down an incredible amount. I asked for prayer for something in my life that I find incredibly challenging, and they responded with saying that there are people in other countries being persecuted for God right now, Jesus was tortured and made fun of on a cross, and he never complained! You know what? I WOULD RATHER BE PERSECUTED AND KILLED FOR MY BELOVED JESUS THAN DEAL WITH THIS USELESS, GOOD FOR NOTHING CRAP. Okay?! But that doesn't mean that this useless, good for nothing crap that goes on in my life doesn't affect me. It does. And because of this person's words, my walls went up. Because he was basically saying that my feelings do not matter because they're small compared to everything else going on. And that hurt me. A lot. So my walls went up. My "I'm perfectly fine, leave me alone or I'll smack you with a frozen fish" barrier went up. (You have to laugh, right? :) ) I can feel the walls, and it's a strange feeling.

Now, back to this video. We saw this at church, and I can't get it out of my head. This is an incredible representation of God's love for us. When Satan tells Jesus that people are just going to leave him like they did in the past, Jesus simply replied, "Some will, but some won't." And those "some" were so worth it to him. When Satan's telling him all the things that he's going to have to endure and give up in order to pay the price for us humans, Jesus just says, I know, I'll do what it takes. I love Him, so much. I cannot understand why we are so precious to him, but we are. He loves us so much. He gave up his life for us, so why is it so hard to give up our temporary life here on earth for Him? "We are not human beings having a spiritual experience, we are spiritual beings having a human experience." I don't know who said this, but it's true. So are you going to accept Jesus' gift? He already paid for it. Please, please ignore the length. Take the 5, 10, however many minutes out of your day to just finish reading this blog post because it will be worth it, I promise. This is it:
There was a certain Professor of Religion named Dr. Christianson, a
studious man who taught at a small college in the western United
States .
Dr. Christianson taught the required survey course in Christianity at
this particular institution. Every student was required to take this
course their freshman year, regardless of his or her major.
Although Dr. Christianson tried hard to communicate the essence of the
gospel in his class, he found that most of his students looked upon
the course as nothing but required drudgery. Despite his best
efforts, most students refused to take Christianity seriously.
This year, Dr. Christianson had a special student named Steve. Steve
was only a freshman, but was studying with the intent of going onto
seminary for the ministry. Steve was popular, he was well liked, and
he was an imposing physical specimen. He was now the starting center
on the school football team, and was the best student in the
professor's class.
One day, Dr. Christianson asked Steve to stay after class so he could
talk with him.
"How many push-ups can you do?"
Steve said, "I do about 200 every night."
"200? That's pretty good, Steve," Dr. Christianson said. "Do you think
you could do 300?"
Steve replied, "I don't know.... I've never done 300 at a time"
"Do you think you could?" again asked Dr. Christianson.
"Well, I can try," said Steve.
"Can you do 300 in sets of 10? I have a class project in mind and I
need you to do about 300 push-ups in sets of ten for this to work.
Can you do it? I need you to tell me you can do it," said the
professor.
Steve said, "Well... I think I can...yeah, I can do it."
Dr. Christianson said, "Good! I need you to do this on Friday.. Let me
explain what I have in mind."
Friday came and Steve got to class early and sat in the front of the
room. When class started, the professor pulled out a big box of
donuts. No, these weren't the normal kinds of donuts, they were the
extra fancy BIG kind, with cream centers and frosting swirls.
Everyone was pretty excited it was Friday, the last class of the day,
and they were going to get an early start on the weekend with a party
in Dr. Christianson's class.
Dr. Christianson went to the first girl in the first row and asked,
"Cynthia, do you want to have one of these donuts?"
Cynthia said, "Yes."
Dr. Christianson then turned to Steve and asked, "Steve, would you do
ten push-ups so that Cynthia can have a donut?"
"Sure!" Steve jumped down from his desk to do a quick ten. Then Steve
again sat in his desk. Dr. Christianson put a donut on Cynthia's desk.
Dr. Christianson then went to Joe, the next person, and asked, "Joe,
do you want a donut?"
Joe said, "Yes." Dr. Christianson asked, "Steve would you do ten
push-ups so Joe can have a donut?"
Steve did ten push-ups, Joe got a donut. And so it went, down the
first aisle, Steve did ten push-ups for every person before they got
their donut.
Walking down the second aisle, Dr. Christianson came to Scott. Scott
was on the basketball team, and in as good condition as Steve. He was
very popular and never lacking for female companionship..
When the professor asked, "Scott do you want a donut?"
Scott's reply was, "Well, can I do my own push-ups?"
Dr. Christianson said, "No, Steve has to do them."
Then Scott said, "Well, I don't want one then."
Dr.... Christianson shrugged and then turned to Steve and asked,
"Steve, would you do ten push-ups so Scott can have a donut he doesn't
want?"
With perfect obedience Steve started to do ten push-ups.
Scott said, "HEY! I said I didn't want one!"
Dr.. Christianson said, "Look! This is my classroom, my class, my
desks, and these are my donuts. Just leave it on the desk if you
don't want it." And he put a donut on Scott's desk.
Now by this time, Steve had begun to slow down a little. He just
stayed on the floor between sets because it took too much effort to be
getting up and down. You could start to see a little perspiration
coming out around his brow.
Dr. Christianson started down the third row. Now the students were
beginning to get a little angry. Dr. Christianson asked Jenny,
"Jenny, do you want a donut?"
Sternly, Jenny said, "No."
Then Dr. Christianson asked Steve, "Steve, would you do ten more
push-ups so Jenny can have a donut that she doesn't want?"
Steve did ten....Jenny got a donut.
By now, a growing sense of uneasiness filled the room. The students
were beginning to say, "No!" and there were all these uneaten donuts
on the desks.
Steve also had to really put forth a lot of extra effort to get these
push-ups done for each donut. There began to be a small pool of sweat
on the floor beneath his face, his arms and brow were beginning to get
red because of the physical effort involved.
Dr. Christianson asked Robert, who was the most vocal unbeliever in
the class, to watch Steve do each push up to make sure he did the full
ten push-ups in a set because he couldn't bear to watch all of Steve's
work for all of those uneaten donuts. He sent Robert over to where
Steve was so Robert count the set and watch Steve closely.
Dr. Christianson started down the fourth row.. During his class,
however, some students from other classes had wandered in and sat down
on the steps along the radiators that ran down the sides of the room.
When the professor realized this, he did a quick count and saw that
now there were 34 students in the room. He started to worry if Steve
would be able to make it.
Dr. Christianson went on to the next person and the next and the next.
Near the end of that row, Steve was really having a rough time. He
was taking a lot more time to complete each set.
Steve asked Dr. Christianson, "Do I have to make my nose touch on each one?"
Dr. Christianson thought for a moment, "Well, they're your push-ups.
You are in charge now. You can do them any way that you want." And
Dr. Christianson went on.
A few moments later, Jason, a recent transfer student, came to the
room and was about to come in when all the students yelled in one
voice, "NO! Don't come in! Stay out!"
Jason didn't know what was going on. Steve picked up his head and
said, "No, let him come."
Professor Christianson said, "You realize that if Jason comes in you
will have to do ten push-ups for him?"
Steve said, "Yes, let him come in. Give him a donut."
Dr. Christianson said, "Okay, Steve, I'll let you get Jason's out of
the way right now. Jason, do you want a donut?"
Jason, new to the room, hardly knew what was going on. "Yes," he
said, "give me a donut."
"Steve, will you do ten push-ups so that Jason can have a donut?"
Steve did ten push-ups very slowly and with great effort. Jason,
bewildered, was handed a donut and sat down.
Dr Christianson finished the fourth row, and then started on those
visitors seated by the heaters. Steve's arms were now shaking with
each push-up in a struggle to lift himself against the force of
gravity. By this time sweat was profusely dropping off of his face,
there was no sound except his heavy breathing; there was not a dry eye
in the room..
The very last two students in the room were two young women, both
cheerleaders, and very popular. Dr. Christianson went to Linda, the
second to last, and asked, "Linda, do you want a doughnut?"
Linda said, very sadly, "No, thank you."
Professor Christianson quietly asked, "Steve, would you do ten
push-ups so that Linda can have a donut she doesn't want?"
Grunting from the effort, Steve did ten very slow push-ups for Linda.
Then Dr. Christianson turned to the last girl, Susan. "Susan, do you
want a donut?"
Susan, with tears flowing down her face, began to cry. "Dr.
Christianson, why can't I help him?"
Dr Christianson, with tears of his own, said, "No, Steve has to do it
alone; I have given him this task and he is in charge of seeing that
everyone has an opportunity for a donut whether they want it or not..
When I decided to have a party this last day of class, I looked at my
grade book. Steve here is the only student with a perfect grade.
Everyone else has failed a test, skipped class, or offered me inferior
work. Steve told me that in football practice, when a player messes
up he must do push-ups. I told Steve that none of you could come to my party unless he paid the price
by doing your push-ups. He and I made a deal for your sakes."
"Steve, would you do ten push-ups so Susan can have a donut?"
As Steve very slowly finished his last push-up, with the understanding
that he had accomplished all that was required of him, having done 350
push-ups, his arms buckled beneath him and he fell to the floor.
Dr. Christianson turned to the room and said, "And so it was, that our
Savior, Jesus Christ, on the cross, plead to the Father, 'Into thy
hands I commend my spirit.' With the understanding that He had done
everything that was required of Him, He yielded up His life. And like
some of those in this room, many of us leave the gift on the desk,
uneaten. "
Two students helped Steve up off the floor and to a seat, physically
exhausted, but wearing a thin smile.
"Well done, good and faithful servant," said the professor, adding,
"Not all sermons are preached in words."
Turning to his class, the professor said, "My wish is that you might
understand and fully comprehend all the riches of grace and mercy that
have been given to you through the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ. He spared not His Only Begotten Son, but gave Him up
for us all, for the whole Church, now and forever. Whether or not we
choose to accept His gift to us, the price has been paid."
"Wouldn't you be foolish and ungrateful to leave it lying on the desk?"
Think about it. Jesus wants so badly for you to accept his gift, he's already paid for it, now it's your job to accept it. I would be more than happy to pray for/with you! Email me! Facebook me! Comment on here! Contact me in some way. I love you all.
God Bless,
Ariel

Alone

***I have decided to deleted this post. Mostly because I thought about it, and I really couldn't see any way that this would be a positive read for people or how it would help anyone in any way. Sorry all.***

Broken

My favorite being on the planet <3

You know what? I already know I'm a crappy person, so you don't have to tell me. I am so done with all of this junk. Maybe I deserve it, I don't know. But let me tell you, no one has any right to call me pathetic, talk about me behind my back, call me names, criticize me, or anything else. If you have something to say about me, say it to my face.
No one has any right to criticize me. You know why? Because you don't know me. You don't know my experiences, you don't know how I feel things, you don't know my situations. I have experienced a lot, and that has led me to depend a lot on people. Which is not something that I'm proud of, because now that I realize that I shouldn't have to depend on people, I'm angry. I'm angry because I feel like no one cares. Whenever I feel like I need to talk to someone, I go through my contacts list on my phone, or look at the people online on facebook, but even if I do want to talk to someone, I can never find the words. I never know what I want to say. I know I just want them to hug me and stroke my hair and tell me it's going to be okay and that they love me. But I don't want to burden anyone, and I don't want to have to rely on people, that's the problem. The ONLY one who can do this for me is God, but it just sucks that I can't feel him there physically, or see him, or hear him. Because I wish I could, I wish that I could feel him hug me, and see the look of love and concern on his face, and hear him whisper in my ear that he loves me. But I don't deserve that one bit. I know that he's the only one who could truly love me. I've failed him and disappointed him so many times, and I hate that about myself. I just want him to love me and accept me, and the difference from people is that I know that he does, no matter what. He's always waiting there for me with open arms. I really don't deserve it. I couldn't get through this without breaking down and crying, and I am so broken right now, but God can now come in a pick up the pieces and carry me along.
God Bless,
Ariel