Monkeys or Robots?

It's time to stop being religious little monkeys, okay? Or robots, whichever you prefer. Yes, as a follower of God we are going to have guide lines, things that God tells us to do or not to do. But do you know why that is? Because he loves us and he knows what these things that he tells us not to do are going to do to us in the long run. He cares about our well being, Daddy knows best, he knows what he's doing and we definitely have to listen to him. But when it gets to the point where you think that you have to follow a bunch of rules about everything, even the littlest things, that's when it gets ridiculous. Don't get me wrong, we should definitely do everything God's way, not ours. But seriously guys? Don't get piercings, God doesn't like them. Don't get tattoos, they don't honor God. Don't tell jokes based on the bible, God hates that.
I have one thing and one thing only to say to you: SHUT UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And trust me, I mean it in the most respectful way possible, but I'm getting tired of it. Piercings, I see no problem with it. I mean, no, they don't glorify God in any way, unless you have a Jesus fish set of earrings or something. Honestly, I have no reason for piercings, so I'm not going to fight it. It's just vanity. But I do think that piercings are awesome. I am possibly going to get gauges, a lip ring, and many more, you know what? You can't stop me. I'm not religious, I really am not, I'm a follower of Christ, that's it, that's all. Tattoos. Okay, someone made a very good argument the other day, and you have all seen my argument in "Tick, Tick, Tick...". He said that at the core of mostly everything is good. Swears at the core are just words, but they are used in harsh ways and to hurt others. Sex is a gift from God at the core, but people abuse that gift. Tattoos at the core are just art work, but people use it for things that don't glorify God. Every single one of my tattoos has some significant meaning for me, and I can't think of any of them that don't have something to do with God. The very first one I'm getting is "WWJD?" on my left wrist because when I have that written there, I remember it, I remember to think before acting, and I would love to be more intentional with that, but sometimes I do forget. That will be my reminder that Jesus is my ultimate role model, that if he wouldn't do it, then neither should I. I'll give you a joke as an example:
An atheist was walking through the woods.

"What majestic trees"!
"What powerful rivers"!
"What beautiful animals"!
He said to himself.
As he was walking alongside the river, he heard a rustling in the bushes behind him. He turned to look. He saw a 7-foot grizzly charge towards him. He ran as fast as he could up the path. He looked over his shoulder & saw that the bear was closing in on him.
He looked over his shoulder again, & the bear was even closer. He tripped & fell on the ground. He rolled over to pick himself up but saw that the bear was right On top of him, reaching for him with his left paw & raising his right paw to strike him. At that instant the Atheist cried out, "Oh my God!"
Time Stopped.
The bear froze.
The forest was still.
As a bright light shone upon the man, a voice came out of the sky. "You deny my existence for all these years, teach others I don't exist and even credit creation to cosmic accident." "Do you expect me to help you out of this predicament? Am I to count you as a believer"?
The atheist looked directly into the light, "It would be hypocritical of me to suddenly ask You to treat me as a Christian now, but perhaps You could make the BEAR a Christian"?
"Very Well," said the Voice.
The light went out. The sounds of the forest resumed. And the bear dropped his right paw, brought both paws together, bowed his head & spoke:
"Lord bless this food, which I am about to receive from thy bounty through Christ our Lord, Amen."

There ya go! Funny, right? I'm sure God laughed too, because it's exaggerated. We know that it wouldn't...or probably wouldn't...happen. GOD HAS A SENSE OF HUMOR. He's not boring. Not at all. We need to get over ourselves, honestly guys. If I would have thought that following God was a bunch of rules that we had to follow, I never would have given my life to him. But I know that it's not, and that's why I stay with him. I hate rules. They irritate me, maybe it's because I'm a teenager, maybe it's because I'm easily annoyed, I don't know. But I would not want to have to remember a bunch of rules just so that I could get into heaven. Most of the stuff is pretty common sense and everyone can do it, but you have to seek God with all your heart. He loves you and he just wants you to follow him with your whole being, not just some of it.
God bless,
Ariel