These are some papers that I've written in the past by God's spirit...
"Who Are You Really Trying to Attract?"
In this paper I may say some hard things. You may read this and then just disregard everything I say, which I seriously hope you will not do!
My question is- "Who are you really trying to attract?"
As a Christian girl growing up in an awesome Christian home I've noticed something VERY dangerous that's grieved and vexed my soul.
You look at the worldly teens and young adults around you and it seems that all they care about is boy friends and girl friends,flirting, attracting the opposite sex, and just totally selfish desires. They dress immodestly, worry about their hair and make up constantly, and they can't pass a mirror without checking to see how they look. You look at their Facebooks and there's about 5000 pictures of themselves doing different poses, and they just post goofy nonsense that means absolutely nothing. And you say to me: "That's what you expect, I mean they're unsaved!"
Well yeah, but the dangerous and Horrible thing I've noticed is you see the EXACT same thing going on with the Christians! As Christians this should NOT be. We are called CHRISTians. Notice that we have taken on the name of "Christ". When you act just like the world when you have the worthy name of Christ as your own name, you are actually blaspheming the holy name of God! You are literally breaking the third commandment ("Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain...") in a BIG way. We are to be COMPLETELY different from this world. A holy people, a peculiar people, sanctified and set apart. We are to be in this world just not of it. And quite frankly, I'm really not seeing this. I see Christian (or so called "christian" anyways) boys and girls flirting with each other,wearing horribly immodest clothes (jeans that are glued to the thighs,showing off cracks, crevices and cleavage, etc.), and even if they are "modest" they're trying to push the limit as far as they can, caking on the make up, obsessing over their hair and fixing it every 5 seconds, putting their humor and jokes on display to get attention, trying to figure out "who likes who", and just so worldly and carnal. They're acting JUST like the world, the thing they supposedly came OUT of! There should be a VERY clear and distinct line between the world and Christians. I don't want to be like them! What about you?
Why can't it be that you see Christian teens and young adults studying their Bibles,praying together,encouraging each other, going out witnessing (and literally witnessing! I've seen first hand how kids treat "Evangelism night" as a social club- a time to flirt, talk, and goof off, and then maybe leave a tract on a bench or chair), asking each other Bible questions,serving God with all their hearts, praising God, talking about what God's been doing in their lives, and just treating each other as true brothers and sisters in Christ. And you may say, "Well, no one is like that! When I get together with my friends they just want to talk about "who likes who" and just goof off. If I even brought up the things of God it'd be brushed off and the subject changed instantly." And you know what? I COMPLETELY understand! Sometimes I get so discouraged about all the carnal talk that I just stay with my Dad, because I know that who he's gonna be talking with will talk about what matters -Eternal stuff. Actually to be honest the MAJORITY of my friends are older then me (some even like 40 years older!). And I really enjoy talking with them because I know I can encourage (and be encouraged),pray for that person, share testimonies, study the Bible, talk about what God's doing, and go out witnessing with them. I know they'll be happy to talk about Jesus,and not brush it off or change the subject. Yes, I LOVE my older friends! <3 And not to say I don't have a few younger friends who do that too, I do. And also, on the flip side, if I only talked to my older friends, then who would encourage the younger ones? We need a generation that's gonna stand up and not care what their friends think.
It doesn't matter if they don't want to talk about Jesus, you still do it! Did the subject get changed? Change it back! They need you to be an example to them. I love all my friends, I care about them, and pray for them everyday. And you know what one of my prayers is? I pray that we'll be the generation who seeks God's face.
I pray that we'll be the generation that searches for Him with all our hearts, that loves precious lost souls and wants to see them saved. I pray that I can set a good example to my friends.
I completely understand if you get discouraged though, because sadly, there's almost NO young people out there who love God with everything in them. If you're like me you probably think how worldly, and carnal, and in mature they all are. You may feel like you're all alone in your walk with Christ. You may not understand how anyone just couldn't be HEAD OVER HEELS in LOVE with Jesus!!!! Just Madly and passionately in love with your Saviour!!! <3<3<3 But, as sad as it may seem, most young people today all they care about is the world. Jesus is not the love of their lives. They just care about having a new boyfriend or girlfriend every week. They obsess over their body,skin,hair,clothes,and face. Jesus is not the center of their lives.Their excuse usually is that they "don't have time" to serve Jesus. And I agree! It's true. They waste all their time on worldly meaningless stuff, that they truly do not have any time for Jesus! Well, you sure would have time to pray and read your Bible in the morning if you didn't spend 4 HOURS "getting ready". You could see lost souls get saved if you weren't hanging out at the mall, or out at the movie theaters for hours on Friday nights. You could draw closer to God and be fed, if you were actually paying attention to the sermon instead of thinking of that boy or girl, or passing notes to your friends. And you could be an example to your friends and encourage them to serve God, if you actually posted godly stuff on your Facebook or sent out godly emails, instead of posting 300 pictures of you in that new outfit or hair do, or sending out goofy and carnal emails.
The world (and the devil) are BOMBARDING young people with this false image of how they should act or look by using the T.V., computers,magazines, and books.Just look around you (or maybe don't look- it's so bad!). The T.V. shows encourage teens to flirt,have a million boyfriends or girlfriends, and disrespect their parents.
The magazines pull people in with phrases like: "Get skinny in 30 days!" or "How to get perfect skin in 5 easy steps." also-"Hate your frizzy hair? Get the new Frizz-be-gone!" and even "How to attract a cute guy." etc.etc.etc. the list could go on and on! It's sickening to behold....:/ And they also have those "perfect" (actually air brushed) models on the front covers, who every girl is trying to look like, though they never will because they aren't even real pictures! It's all just a propped up, false image, that every one's going after. All the "new styles" that come out everyone just has to have, no one is an individual anymore. All the girls look like the latest actress or pop star singer, and same with the boys (Justin Beiber hair cuts,etc.). It's just plain RIDICULOUS!!!! The Bible says in Exodus 23:2 that "thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil..."
No one listens to that anymore -for sure! And now worldly and Christian young people alike are buying into it hook, line, and sinker. SAD. VERY SAD.
We are NOT to be going to the world and seeing what they are doing, or how they do stuff and imitate them. Remember Dinah in Genesis 34. It says that she "went out to see the daughters of the land...." If you continue reading you'll see disastrous results that followed that very bad decision. Don't look at the daughters of the land (the world) and see what they're doing, look at Jesus and His words. If you look at the world you'll end up insecure, helpless, abused, and heart broken. Jesus would NEVER do that to His beloved children!
Another thing I'd like to say is this: you're really not as "eligible" as you think. You're only gonna be ONE man's wife, or ONE woman's husband. ONE. Not a million.
So why are you trying to attract every guy or girl possible anyways? And when you (as a Christian) are dressing like the world, and acting like the world, you know what you're gonna attract? A worldly and carnal person (or even in unbeliever!), who could really care less about you, but they're just selfish and like the way you make them feel.The whole dating philosophy is feeding this, and its SO messed up, but that's another discussion. I, for one, am NOT trying to attract a worldly guy. You know what kinda guy I'd like attracted to me (when I'm old enough to get married)? A God fearing, King James Bible loving, Satan and sin hating, holy, and set apart guy. A guy who loves God with ALL his heart, and desires to serve Him. A guy who loves lost souls and desires to see them saved. A man of God willing to take a stand no matter the cost. A mighty warrior for Jesus. But if I'm not being a God fearing, King James Bible loving, Satan and sin hating, holy, and set apart girl. A girl who loves God with all my my heart, and desires to serve Him. A girl who loves lost souls and desires to see them saved. A woman of God willing to take a stand no matter the cost. And being a mighty warrior for Jesus myself, then I won't attract that kind of guy! A true man of God will be attracted to a true woman of God. You don't even need to look for this match though. If your focus is the Lord Jesus Christ, and you're madly in love with Him, he'll provide you with a godly man or woman in due season.
A good Christian isn't gonna be attracted to someone who constantly worries about their looks,or who's flirtatious, or carnal.
I'm not saying that there's no physical attraction, but true love isn't just physical attraction. My brother is in a beautiful courtship with an awesome girl, and I thought it was so sweet that they told each other that even if their faces got clawed by a bear, or burned off, or whatever, they'd still love each other. Now that is true love right there.<3
True love isn't selfish, but selfless.True charity is a giving love. Read the famous 1 Corinthians 13 chapter and just look at all that giving. The word charity is a very strong word. Back in the day when a man really, REALLY loved a woman he'd say "I cherish you", which meant that he really meant it! Love gives.<3
Okay, so we've seen the world's opinion and now let's look at the Bible our final authority.
It says in Proverbs 31:30 "Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised."
A woman that fears the Lord will be praised! You may see all those worldly women everywhere getting praised for their beauty, but don't let it fool you.They just have a empty, hollow, and propped up beauty that is going to fade with age and time. If you see a godly women who loves God-she is the fairest of them all! Even if she doesn't get praised here on earth, she definitely WILL in Heaven. If you look in verse 28 of that same chapter it states that,"Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her." She definitely had a God fearing man who saw what a jewel she was, and he called her blessed, and he praised her. Her kids did too!
Another good verse is 1 Samuel 16:7 (This is VERY providential because I just read this verse in my Bible reading! God is so awesome-sigh)
"But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart." Man may look on the outward appearance but God looks on the heart. What does God see when he looks at your heart?
Guys, we need to stop being so focused on outward, outward. I mean we do need a proper balance. You do need to be focused on outward when choosing what to wear (modest apparel), or on conducting ourselves in a holy matter, and the Bible does say in 1 Thess. 5:22 to "Abstain from all appearance of evil." But, that's where proper balance is key.
Also, when you're serving God, and your heart is right, the outward will start becoming the inward. When your heart is right with God you'll want to be modest, you'll want to be holy, and you will abstain from all appearance of evil. Make sure your heart is right!
If you desire to someday (Lord willing) get married to a godly person (I know I do!), then you need to not adopt the world's way, but God's way.
What's "cool" or "in style" shouldn't be our lifestyle. Who cares if everyone thinks you're weird, or outdated. Who cares if all the so called "pretty" girls are getting praised. When you get to heaven and God himself looks at you and says (in my case)"Honour Purity, well done thou good and faithful servant. Enter thou into the joy of the
Lord." And you get HIS praise and HIS rewards, and it will be just Awesome! NOTHING will compare-I Promise you that much. :) We are not serving man or pleasing man.
One of my favorite verses is Galatians 1:10,"For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ."
My goal is to be So focused on God, so FULL of Him, and SO MADLY in love with Him that -even if I never get married- He WILL be enough. He IS enough. And even if the Lord wills me to get married I will always know who my FIRST love is-The Lord Jesus Christ!<3<3<3<3
My future husband will be second, but I know he won't care because I'll be second to him too!
Jesus is my first love and my beloved, and I know that He'll be my future husband's first love as well.
Guys, let's be a generation that's different. Let the world look at us young people and say "Man, they are weird. They aren't like us!"
Let's be like Jason and the Disciples in Act 17 where they "...turned the world upside down..."
Let's be radical young people who aren't after attracting the opposite sex, but trying to attract Jesus Christ. Let's go after God's VERY heart.<3
Is no one else doing this? WHO CARES! Are you with me? Though none go with me, still I will follow.
Who Are You Really Trying to Attract?
I LOVE YOU ALL!!!!
~Honour Purity
My question is- "Who are you really trying to attract?"
As a Christian girl growing up in an awesome Christian home I've noticed something VERY dangerous that's grieved and vexed my soul.
You look at the worldly teens and young adults around you and it seems that all they care about is boy friends and girl friends,flirting, attracting the opposite sex, and just totally selfish desires. They dress immodestly, worry about their hair and make up constantly, and they can't pass a mirror without checking to see how they look. You look at their Facebooks and there's about 5000 pictures of themselves doing different poses, and they just post goofy nonsense that means absolutely nothing. And you say to me: "That's what you expect, I mean they're unsaved!"
Well yeah, but the dangerous and Horrible thing I've noticed is you see the EXACT same thing going on with the Christians! As Christians this should NOT be. We are called CHRISTians. Notice that we have taken on the name of "Christ". When you act just like the world when you have the worthy name of Christ as your own name, you are actually blaspheming the holy name of God! You are literally breaking the third commandment ("Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain...") in a BIG way. We are to be COMPLETELY different from this world. A holy people, a peculiar people, sanctified and set apart. We are to be in this world just not of it. And quite frankly, I'm really not seeing this. I see Christian (or so called "christian" anyways) boys and girls flirting with each other,wearing horribly immodest clothes (jeans that are glued to the thighs,showing off cracks, crevices and cleavage, etc.), and even if they are "modest" they're trying to push the limit as far as they can, caking on the make up, obsessing over their hair and fixing it every 5 seconds, putting their humor and jokes on display to get attention, trying to figure out "who likes who", and just so worldly and carnal. They're acting JUST like the world, the thing they supposedly came OUT of! There should be a VERY clear and distinct line between the world and Christians. I don't want to be like them! What about you?
Why can't it be that you see Christian teens and young adults studying their Bibles,praying together,encouraging each other, going out witnessing (and literally witnessing! I've seen first hand how kids treat "Evangelism night" as a social club- a time to flirt, talk, and goof off, and then maybe leave a tract on a bench or chair), asking each other Bible questions,serving God with all their hearts, praising God, talking about what God's been doing in their lives, and just treating each other as true brothers and sisters in Christ. And you may say, "Well, no one is like that! When I get together with my friends they just want to talk about "who likes who" and just goof off. If I even brought up the things of God it'd be brushed off and the subject changed instantly." And you know what? I COMPLETELY understand! Sometimes I get so discouraged about all the carnal talk that I just stay with my Dad, because I know that who he's gonna be talking with will talk about what matters -Eternal stuff. Actually to be honest the MAJORITY of my friends are older then me (some even like 40 years older!). And I really enjoy talking with them because I know I can encourage (and be encouraged),pray for that person, share testimonies, study the Bible, talk about what God's doing, and go out witnessing with them. I know they'll be happy to talk about Jesus,and not brush it off or change the subject. Yes, I LOVE my older friends! <3 And not to say I don't have a few younger friends who do that too, I do. And also, on the flip side, if I only talked to my older friends, then who would encourage the younger ones? We need a generation that's gonna stand up and not care what their friends think.
It doesn't matter if they don't want to talk about Jesus, you still do it! Did the subject get changed? Change it back! They need you to be an example to them. I love all my friends, I care about them, and pray for them everyday. And you know what one of my prayers is? I pray that we'll be the generation who seeks God's face.
I pray that we'll be the generation that searches for Him with all our hearts, that loves precious lost souls and wants to see them saved. I pray that I can set a good example to my friends.
I completely understand if you get discouraged though, because sadly, there's almost NO young people out there who love God with everything in them. If you're like me you probably think how worldly, and carnal, and in mature they all are. You may feel like you're all alone in your walk with Christ. You may not understand how anyone just couldn't be HEAD OVER HEELS in LOVE with Jesus!!!! Just Madly and passionately in love with your Saviour!!! <3<3<3 But, as sad as it may seem, most young people today all they care about is the world. Jesus is not the love of their lives. They just care about having a new boyfriend or girlfriend every week. They obsess over their body,skin,hair,clothes,and face. Jesus is not the center of their lives.Their excuse usually is that they "don't have time" to serve Jesus. And I agree! It's true. They waste all their time on worldly meaningless stuff, that they truly do not have any time for Jesus! Well, you sure would have time to pray and read your Bible in the morning if you didn't spend 4 HOURS "getting ready". You could see lost souls get saved if you weren't hanging out at the mall, or out at the movie theaters for hours on Friday nights. You could draw closer to God and be fed, if you were actually paying attention to the sermon instead of thinking of that boy or girl, or passing notes to your friends. And you could be an example to your friends and encourage them to serve God, if you actually posted godly stuff on your Facebook or sent out godly emails, instead of posting 300 pictures of you in that new outfit or hair do, or sending out goofy and carnal emails.
The world (and the devil) are BOMBARDING young people with this false image of how they should act or look by using the T.V., computers,magazines, and books.Just look around you (or maybe don't look- it's so bad!). The T.V. shows encourage teens to flirt,have a million boyfriends or girlfriends, and disrespect their parents.
The magazines pull people in with phrases like: "Get skinny in 30 days!" or "How to get perfect skin in 5 easy steps." also-"Hate your frizzy hair? Get the new Frizz-be-gone!" and even "How to attract a cute guy." etc.etc.etc. the list could go on and on! It's sickening to behold....:/ And they also have those "perfect" (actually air brushed) models on the front covers, who every girl is trying to look like, though they never will because they aren't even real pictures! It's all just a propped up, false image, that every one's going after. All the "new styles" that come out everyone just has to have, no one is an individual anymore. All the girls look like the latest actress or pop star singer, and same with the boys (Justin Beiber hair cuts,etc.). It's just plain RIDICULOUS!!!! The Bible says in Exodus 23:2 that "thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil..."
No one listens to that anymore -for sure! And now worldly and Christian young people alike are buying into it hook, line, and sinker. SAD. VERY SAD.
We are NOT to be going to the world and seeing what they are doing, or how they do stuff and imitate them. Remember Dinah in Genesis 34. It says that she "went out to see the daughters of the land...." If you continue reading you'll see disastrous results that followed that very bad decision. Don't look at the daughters of the land (the world) and see what they're doing, look at Jesus and His words. If you look at the world you'll end up insecure, helpless, abused, and heart broken. Jesus would NEVER do that to His beloved children!
Another thing I'd like to say is this: you're really not as "eligible" as you think. You're only gonna be ONE man's wife, or ONE woman's husband. ONE. Not a million.
So why are you trying to attract every guy or girl possible anyways? And when you (as a Christian) are dressing like the world, and acting like the world, you know what you're gonna attract? A worldly and carnal person (or even in unbeliever!), who could really care less about you, but they're just selfish and like the way you make them feel.The whole dating philosophy is feeding this, and its SO messed up, but that's another discussion. I, for one, am NOT trying to attract a worldly guy. You know what kinda guy I'd like attracted to me (when I'm old enough to get married)? A God fearing, King James Bible loving, Satan and sin hating, holy, and set apart guy. A guy who loves God with ALL his heart, and desires to serve Him. A guy who loves lost souls and desires to see them saved. A man of God willing to take a stand no matter the cost. A mighty warrior for Jesus. But if I'm not being a God fearing, King James Bible loving, Satan and sin hating, holy, and set apart girl. A girl who loves God with all my my heart, and desires to serve Him. A girl who loves lost souls and desires to see them saved. A woman of God willing to take a stand no matter the cost. And being a mighty warrior for Jesus myself, then I won't attract that kind of guy! A true man of God will be attracted to a true woman of God. You don't even need to look for this match though. If your focus is the Lord Jesus Christ, and you're madly in love with Him, he'll provide you with a godly man or woman in due season.
A good Christian isn't gonna be attracted to someone who constantly worries about their looks,or who's flirtatious, or carnal.
I'm not saying that there's no physical attraction, but true love isn't just physical attraction. My brother is in a beautiful courtship with an awesome girl, and I thought it was so sweet that they told each other that even if their faces got clawed by a bear, or burned off, or whatever, they'd still love each other. Now that is true love right there.<3
True love isn't selfish, but selfless.True charity is a giving love. Read the famous 1 Corinthians 13 chapter and just look at all that giving. The word charity is a very strong word. Back in the day when a man really, REALLY loved a woman he'd say "I cherish you", which meant that he really meant it! Love gives.<3
Okay, so we've seen the world's opinion and now let's look at the Bible our final authority.
It says in Proverbs 31:30 "Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised."
A woman that fears the Lord will be praised! You may see all those worldly women everywhere getting praised for their beauty, but don't let it fool you.They just have a empty, hollow, and propped up beauty that is going to fade with age and time. If you see a godly women who loves God-she is the fairest of them all! Even if she doesn't get praised here on earth, she definitely WILL in Heaven. If you look in verse 28 of that same chapter it states that,"Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her." She definitely had a God fearing man who saw what a jewel she was, and he called her blessed, and he praised her. Her kids did too!
Another good verse is 1 Samuel 16:7 (This is VERY providential because I just read this verse in my Bible reading! God is so awesome-sigh)
"But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart." Man may look on the outward appearance but God looks on the heart. What does God see when he looks at your heart?
Guys, we need to stop being so focused on outward, outward. I mean we do need a proper balance. You do need to be focused on outward when choosing what to wear (modest apparel), or on conducting ourselves in a holy matter, and the Bible does say in 1 Thess. 5:22 to "Abstain from all appearance of evil." But, that's where proper balance is key.
Also, when you're serving God, and your heart is right, the outward will start becoming the inward. When your heart is right with God you'll want to be modest, you'll want to be holy, and you will abstain from all appearance of evil. Make sure your heart is right!
If you desire to someday (Lord willing) get married to a godly person (I know I do!), then you need to not adopt the world's way, but God's way.
What's "cool" or "in style" shouldn't be our lifestyle. Who cares if everyone thinks you're weird, or outdated. Who cares if all the so called "pretty" girls are getting praised. When you get to heaven and God himself looks at you and says (in my case)"Honour Purity, well done thou good and faithful servant. Enter thou into the joy of the
Lord." And you get HIS praise and HIS rewards, and it will be just Awesome! NOTHING will compare-I Promise you that much. :) We are not serving man or pleasing man.
One of my favorite verses is Galatians 1:10,"For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ."
My goal is to be So focused on God, so FULL of Him, and SO MADLY in love with Him that -even if I never get married- He WILL be enough. He IS enough. And even if the Lord wills me to get married I will always know who my FIRST love is-The Lord Jesus Christ!<3<3<3<3
My future husband will be second, but I know he won't care because I'll be second to him too!
Jesus is my first love and my beloved, and I know that He'll be my future husband's first love as well.
Guys, let's be a generation that's different. Let the world look at us young people and say "Man, they are weird. They aren't like us!"
Let's be like Jason and the Disciples in Act 17 where they "...turned the world upside down..."
Let's be radical young people who aren't after attracting the opposite sex, but trying to attract Jesus Christ. Let's go after God's VERY heart.<3
Is no one else doing this? WHO CARES! Are you with me? Though none go with me, still I will follow.
Who Are You Really Trying to Attract?
I LOVE YOU ALL!!!!
~Honour Purity
"We Are The Light"~
Matthew 5:14-16- "Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." Have you noticed that when you turn on a light that the darkness HAS to leave? Well, darkness is swallowed up in God's light! Awesome! God has called us to be the salt (Matthew 5:13) and light in this dark world. In and of ourselves we can't do that. We need the help and Spirit of Jesus. Jesus is the ULTIMATE light (like the sun) and we are like little reflectors reflecting his TRUE light (like the moon). John 8:12-" Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." 1 John 1:7 is talking about us walking in his light. If we are the light of this world: we can NOT be acting like this world! We are to be a "peculiar" (different) people right? 1 John 2:15-17 are great verses on what kinda EVIL stuff is in this world-the lust of the flesh,the lust of the eyes,and the pride of life. 1John 1:5 states that "God is Light". Well I thought Jesus is the light of the world? That's because Jesus and God are ONE! Okay, so we are to be the light of the world and a peculiar people, but how? First things first-you need to be a saved, born again, Bible believing Christian. Then you need to repent of your carnal worldliness, and be crucified to Christ, living by the gospel, surrendering your WHOLE will entirely to him, and be full of his Spirit. The Bible says-"go ye into all the world and preach the gospel"... So you need to street preach,witness,and spread the good news to everyone everywhere! while we are in this world we shouldn't be seeking worldly pleasures,riches,etc. We are to be laying our treasures in heaven.(Matt. 6:19-23)I mean I want my reward in Heaven not in this filthy-going to pass away anyway-earth! What about you? We are to be IN this world but NOT OF it. Now people may mock,"persecute," and hate you, but be happy! :) Yes I DID say "be happy." Because GREAT will your rewards be in Heaven! I mean, Jesus is building an MANSION for us in Heaven (not a "room" like some of those new versions say). You should be THRILLED to suffer shame for the name of Jesus (See-Acts 5:40-42). We are NOT "persecuted" here in America anyways. We're just "annoyacuted"! LOL But Really- they don't stone us, or whip us,or even kill us for standing up for Jesus. They just "annoy us. Look at Paul in 2Corinthians 11:23-33 (DO NOT skip those verses!PLEASE read them!) Now he WAS persecuted! I feel like I have done nothing for Jesus when I read that! Paul is like the GREATEST heroes of the faith of ALL time! Next to Jesus-Paul is a great example for anyone to follow.We have it easy to be the light in this world; but these carnal, lukewarm Christians can't even do that little bit for God! WHAT A CRYING SHAME!!!!! A VERY sad generation we live in... Do you want to be counted with these people? I KNOW I don't! Count me out of the darkness, I will be the light in this dark world through the strength and power of God. AMEN!!! What about you?And for all those GREAT Christians out there who ARE being the light-KEEP UP THE AWESOME WORK! God Bless! THE END.... ...... IS NEAR!
~Honour Purity
~Honour Purity
"Marvel Not if The world Hates you"
"Marvel Not if the World Hates You"~ If you've read my paper titled, "We Are The Light"then I guess that this is kind of a second paper to go along with it. First, I'm gonna start off with a testimony of something awesome God did.This paticular morning I had started off the day by reading the book of 1 John. One of the verses that really stuck out to me was 1 John 3:13 which states,"Marvel not if the world hate you". After I read that I immediately started to think of other verses that tied into that one. Verses like John 15:18 ("If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you."), or John 7:7 ("The world cannot hate you; but me it hateth, because I testify of it, that the works therof are evil."), and also Luke 6:22 ("Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake."). Okay, so with that in mind, let's fast forward a couple hours to when my family and I were at the local skate park. It's kind of funny that when I witness to people I actually start making friends. And I also build a rapport with people I see out here often so I can find a chance to witness to them. Almost everyone out there gets at least a tract from one of us, and all of them have definitely read the Scripture magnets posted all over our Vehicle. Who can miss them?! LOL I jumped out of the truck and waved a hello to Greg, a 14 year old boy I've witnessed to and given tracts to as well. I thought back to the time I first met him (about a month back I think). . . I had approached him with the intent to witness to him, and it had turned into an AMAZING conversation! He even stated a little later that he was so glad I had made him think about eternity and things like that because he never had before. And then he even wanted a tract for his sister, and told me he wished I could talk to her too! A few days later I was casually talking with Greg and his 15 year old friend Robby when I asked Robby if he would go get his friend "Devin" (also 15) so I could talk to them about something (as you've probably guessed-I wanted to witness to them both). Robby was like "What! Why?!" Then Greg goes (to my obvious delight) "Hey! Just do it man!" So, Robby reluctantly skated off to get Devin. I could hear him off in the distance saying, "Hey Devin! This weird girl wants to talk to us!" Then Greg (who was still sitting there) looked at me with this ABSOLUTELY hilarious expression on his face and goes, "I know what you're doing!"I was kind of shocked."You do?""Yeah. You're gonna talk to them about all the stuff you talked to me about right?" "Yes!" I laughed."How'd you know?""Oh, I just did."I could have busted out laughing! That, coupled with Robby labeling me as a "weird girl", and Greg practically ordering him to get his friend, was just too,too funny! Well, anyways,back to the skate park. . . I struggled to lift the heavy door and pull my beautiful blue long board (okay, is not actually mine -it's really my Dad's-but he lets me and my sis borrow it until we get our own) out of the back of the truck, and skipped over to the park. It was a gorgeous day despite it being just a tad chilly, so there were quite a few people out, including little kids climbing all over the ramps, which is pretty annoying seeing there's a nice and practically new playground not 15 feet away! And you really have to be careful because mindless kids can cause you to wreck hurting you and themselves. I started to skate around avoiding kids, crazy skaters (who could KILL you!), and one of the most deadly things (though quite small) the dreaded rock!I hate hitting those things! You can be flying around having a blast when outta nowhere jam into one of them- the board definitely stops-but you don't! Many a skinned knee and scraped up hand have occurred following a "rock accident". It was then that I noticed "Laura". "Laura" is a girl (about 16 or 17) whom I've seen out here a few times. She's just learning how to skateboard as well, so because of that connection I've gotten to talk to her, and now we know each other. "Hey Laura!" I called long boarding over to where she and another guy (her friend) were."Oh, hey Honour! How are you?" "Doing great! And you?""Oh, I'm good.""Learned anything new?" "Well. . . not really." She sighed.The last time I had seen her she had been lamenting the fact that she had no one to learn skateboarding with, and now she (with a happy face) related how she finally persuaded her friend "Zach" to skate with her. They both have literally just started skate boarding and since I've been doing it for about a month or two, and thanks to my awesome teacher (My Dad!) and to my overly energetic eagerness to learn more (lol), I've progressed quite a bit. So, she was asking me questions and advice, ranging from things like,"Do you know why my wheels are spinning slow?" Or," How do you do this trick?" To me telling her to NEVER buy a board from Wal-mart,etc. And so we chatted for a little while and then parted ways. Her to continue skating and me to go do what I like to call "Wearing my little sister out at the park time". That's a joke because in reality, she proceeded to tire me completely out with 500 (exaggeration-25) games of tag and hide-n-go-seek, running up and down the playground, tickling her when she came down the slides, pushing her "higher and higher" on the swings, and about 50 races to Mom and back, where (of course) she "beat" me every time!LOL Then with my turn finished I went back to long boarding. I felt like God was telling me to go ahead and witness to Laura, so I sat on the wooden bench that runs along one whole side of the park and waited for a chance to talk to her. She was skating and goofing around, and then I watched horrified as she attempted to skate board up a ramp dubbed "the camel hump" and then proceeded to fall flat on her face! I felt bad for her so I encouraged her to try going up the "baseball mound"instead (don't worry I was not trying to be evil (maw haw haw!)and see her fall again! This ramp is a very gentle sloping, flattish ramp that I can sail over smoothly). She succeeded in going about halfway up, jumping off, and (smiling sheepishly) walking back over to where I was standing. After a little bit I finally brought up eternal matters with this easy conversation starter. . . "Hey guys! Can I ask y'all an interesting question?""Sure!" they both replied. But I could tell by Laura's face she knew where I was going instantly. "So, what do you think happens when you die?"Laura seemed reluctant to answer but she finally stated bluntly, "I think you just go in the ground and that's it." "Okay...and what about you Zach?""Well...I used to believe in God and all that stuff,but now I just think you go in the ground and that's it as well." "So, basically you cease to exist right?""Yeah, that's it.""So where do you get your information?" Laura wouldn't so much as look at me, but Zach replied,"Really nowhere. I just kinda thought of it myself I guess.""Okay, well let me ask you this,how d you know you're right?"While I was asking this question Laura finally skated off really angry."Come on Zach!" She called- but he wasn't listening. I was kind of disappointed because Laura was the one I had initially wanted to talk to, but I knew Zach's soul was just as important. "Well, I don't think I'm right. I really don't know.I don't think anyone can be right about that!" He really looked confused."Do you have any religious background?" "Yes. I grew up southern Baptist, and both of my parents are southern Baptist."I quickly realized my time was running out because Laura kept skating by and calling Zach to come get some water, and she seemed extremely angry! I decided to get right down to the point. "Well. obviously I believe in Heaven or Hell (I'm sure you've seen our Bible magnets!*). Now you said that you're not really sure if there is a heaven or hell, let's just say there's a heaven, do you think you'd be good enough to go there?" "Oh yeah! Sure!" (that's Proverbs 20:6 ** in action right there folks!)"Well, I'm sure you've heard of the ten commandments right?" He nodded his head."Yes."So how many of them can you name?" He then proceeded to name 8 out of 10! I was shocked! "Wow! You do know them!""Yep!" He laughed."Well, I'm gonna take you through a few of them to see how good you really are. Have you ever told a lie?" "Yes.""What does that make you if you tell lies?" "Ummm...a sinner?""Well...a little more specifically. If someone murders someone they're a "murderer", so if you tell lies you're a. . ." "Liar!" He about shouted it!"Yes! That's it.Have you ever stolen anything?""Yes." "What does that make you?""A thief.""One of the commandments you forgot to name is, "thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain". Ever used God's holy name as a curse word? "Yes.""Well, that's called blasphemy."He nodded his head. "Yeah." "Here's one that gets a lot of people, You quoted me the commandment "thou shalt not commit adultery". But Jesus said that whosoever looks at a women to lust after her has committed adultery already with her in his heart. See, Jesus has high standards. Ever looked at someone with lust?" "Yeah.""Well, you've just admitted to me that you're a lying, thieving, blasphemer, and adulterer at heart." Strangely enough he looked delighted! "If you were to face God on judgement day do you think you'd be innocent or guilty?" "Well....I'd be guilty. But God forgives right?" You should have seen his face- he thought he had me!"Yes, God does forgive, but there's something we have to do it's called "repentance". Do you know what "repentance" means?" "Uhhh...." He tried to think."Here, let me help you. You know the "180 trick"?" BTW-I really enjoy using this word picture with skateboarders! "Yeah...""Well, that's what repentance is, it's doing a "180" (or totally turning away) from your sins." His eyes lighted up. It really made sense to him! Suddenly I heard some laughter off to the side. It was some teen aged skaters listening in on the conversation and apparently they had liked my using of the 180 trick to explain repentance! I thought that was neat. But then my spirits plummeted, out of the corner of my eye I could see Laura angrily making her way towards us again!"Oh no!" I thought. "Better Hurry!" "So, do you know the gospel? Do you know what Jesus did for you?""Yes I do." "Well. . ." I began but was suddenly cut off by Laura yelling,"We're Jewish and we need water! Bye!" She then tried to pull Zach towards the sidewalk that led to the water fountain. He jerked away and looked at me apologetically as she skated away once again. "I'm sorry! I don't know what's gotten into her. But I really better get. I REALLY appreciate you what you're doing, you talking to me, and stepping out like this. It was good! Sorry!" "That's okay, but Zach, the real reason I wanted to talk to y'all is because I don't want y'all to go to hell when you die, I want to see you both in heaven. And you know what else? Love Warns!" That really seemed to register in his mind and leave an impact on him. You could tell that he felt really bad. "So are you really Jewish?" I asked with a smile."I'm not, but she is." "Oh, okay! Well, please tell Laura that I'm not mad at her at all, and that I said "bye"."Oh, I definitely will! And I don't think she's mad at you. Thanks! Bye!" He skated off to join her and for the rest of the time she wouldn't so much as look at me, and just had this immense hatred for me! It was amazing! And when my Dad and I would try to talk to her she would completely ignore us. When we were finally leaving I ran over to Zach with two tracts and asked if he would please read one and give the other to Laura. He said he sure would and bid me a nice day. I watched from the truck as he handed it to her. She looked at it for a quick second and then set it down on the wooden bench where it immediately blew off. I felt really bad for her. Why was she so hard? And why did she hate me so much? Then Zach walked over and picked up the tract where it was laying in the gravel and put it in his pocket with his tract. "Well good for him!" I thought. And then all of a sudden everything dawned on me. I wasn't supposed to marvel if she hated me. She wasn't even hating me! She was hating the spirit within me. She was hating Jesus! All of the verses from that morning flashed through my min. I was blessed because she hated me! Wow! I began to thank and praise God, and also pray for Zach and Laura's souls. God had prepared me for that that whole incident that very morning! I was awestruck. God can truly do AMAZING things, and what an AWESOME God we serve! And that's not the only thing he's done . I could give you thousands of testimonies where God has moved. If you let God work in your life (and ask him to!) you'll definitely see it- that's for certain! So, I say all that to say ( and yes, I do know that that was a LOT to say! lol) Just to talk about this. . . "The world hating you".~I think one of the worst fears in witnessing is rejection. We feel like if we're rejected we're a loser. We'll feel like they just hate us SOOO much! And sometimes you will get rejected and it may seem like they hate you. But the majority of the time they will want to talk (take Zach for an example). Hey! Don't marvel if they hate you! For one, it's gonna happen. But for two, it's the spirit and devils inside them that hate and abhorr the spirit inside you-Jesus. They will literally hate you without a cause and they don't even know why. They have no reason whatsoever to hate you and guess what?! They don't even understand why they hate you! But we know. It's Jesus. Take John 15:18 and John 7:7 for an example. They hated Jesus before you anyways, and even while they think they're hating you, they're really just still hating Jesus.When you're holy,Spirit filled,and walking with God, the world (and definitely the Devil!) will absolutely abhorr you! You are the light. You stand out.And you want to make a difference in this evil and dark world. And they HATE it! Expect it, but don't let it discourage you. Because you know what? God LOVES it! God's gonna literally bless you when they hate you, and you're storing up rewards in heaven.I'd rather be a fool in the world's eyes then a fool in the Lord's eyes. Wouldn't you? I'm a fool for Christ and I LOVE it! Plus, you're not a loser when they reject you. You're a winner every single time! They can reject you,they can talk to you, or you can just plant a little seed, and you get rewards in heaven for every one! Come on guys, isn't that awesome?! Don't be afraid of rejection, and DO NOT marvel if they hate you. Another thing I want to talk about is this: if the world doesn't hate you then there's something seriously wrong! The world should look at you and say something like this. . ."Man that girl's weird! She has this light in her eyes I've never seen anywhere else.She witnesses to everything that moves, and gives tracts out like candy. She dresses differently, kinda modest I guess. She's not out trying to attract the opposite sex, or be flirtatious with every guy who walks by. She talks about God a lot, in fact she doesn't talk like the world at all! Her car has Bible messages all over it (and no, they were NOT looking at a fancy political sticker or that "brazen bold" stand with that "Jesus" fish with the cross in it!). And just the other day I saw her standing on a street corner yelling like a maniac that "Jesus can save me" and that "Love warns!" "Oh yeah", the other guy goes,"I was in the mall sitting on a bench when she approached me and wanted to witness to me! And every time I see her (I live on her street) she's obeying her parents,loving her siblings,and trying to act just like Jesus.I rarely see her sin. I've even heard her say that she's actually trying to be holy! Imagine that. That girl's not right in the head. As a matter of fact- I HATE her! These things should be said about guys too-I'm not just trying to pick on the girls! And all this is for me as well, I'm not trying to say I'm a perfect Christain example. But here's a little poem thingy that I got from my Dad: "If the world doesn't think you odd,you're not walking with God." Let me say that again. "If the world doesn't think you odd (yes odd!),you're not walking with God." Yesiree! If the world loves you, you better get closer and closer to God folks! Or even more serious, make sure that you're even saved.Don't take it lightly! God is not coming back for a lukewarm,laodicean,church bride. And not onlt should the world not love us, we should NOT be loving the world! 1 John 2:15-17 states,"Love not the world, nethier the things that are in the world. ("things" does include your precious ipod, or cell phone, or anything that can keep you from loving God more than this world!) If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world,the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes,and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust therof:but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever." God should be MORE precious to you than ANYTHING in this world. Expect persacution and hatred (which is nothing compared with the real persacution of the earlier saints). Rise up and take a stand! Let the world hate you (yes, you did read that right!). Who cares? We're pleasing God and that's all that matters in this life. You'll see God's blessings and approval on your life, and man's lousy approval won't even come close to comparing with it. We're not here to please mere dust, we're here to please, and glorify, and praise, and serve God, and him ALONE! Live for God because that's all that matters! Marvel Not If the World Hates You! Love Love Love y'all!<3
~Honour Purity
*One of our Bible magnets says,"If you died tonight would you be in heaven or hell?" **Proverbs 20:6 says,"Most men will procalim everyone his own goodness: but a faithful man who can find?"
~Honour Purity
*One of our Bible magnets says,"If you died tonight would you be in heaven or hell?" **Proverbs 20:6 says,"Most men will procalim everyone his own goodness: but a faithful man who can find?"