by H.B. 

Ever feel like you are in your own little mess, your own little world, and suddenly you wake up, and realize you owe an apology...to a lot of people in your life?

The going gets rough. But will you really give up? Galatians 6:9 encourages us to do otherwise; it basically says, don't get tired of doing the right thing! Because you will get the reward that comes along with doing good!

And while the whole world has tried to tell you that there's no way some things are going to happen, and that,

"People who say that nothing's impossible have never tried to slam a revolving door,"

...well, just imagine that revolving door get ripped off it's spinning pole and slammed right into the ground. Because with God, all things are possible. Mark 19:36

Only a hardened hard will not believe. Only a hardened heart will say, some things just aren't going to get better, some things just aren't going to change. There's news for such hard hearts; the reality of God's work and God's power, is a lot stronger of a reality than what we can just see and feel.

True, some things aren't going to change. Dead people don't generally come back to life. A lost limb probably isn't getting replaced. A scarred heart and memory may not get flawlessly healed. But clinging to God, who is the author of our hope (Hebrews 12:2, as our hope is in Christ's work on the cross), is good, while clinging to pain and anger and bitterness and fear of really living and doubt of really knowing, is not good. Those last things, will eat you up. That first part, will teach you how to live fully.

The old cliche stands. When God has brought you to it, He does bring you through it, and you are way too blessed to let it all go. It might be hard, but he never said it would be easy, just that He'd be with you, and He never said it wouldn't be a mess, just that when we looked back, it would be beautiful.

And so, ask for forgiveness for being this short-sighted.

Because sometimes you just keep on forgetting, what you've just gone through. And who you have. and Who is with you!

If God is with you, who can be against you? Romans 8:31

by: Lizzy

 by: Courtney S.

Friendship is apart of almost everyone's childhood. Especially as we get older and feel a need for support from someone other than our family. Someone who we can "unite" with and help us see things through the eyes of Christ to help us make the right decision (Romans 15: 5-6). Friends are usually the ones who play this role.

Are your friends loyal? Are you a loyal friend? Are you the type of friend that Wendy Hinson is speaking of in the poem below?

Think about this. Are your friends "gems" in your eyes? When you are away from them do you miss them very much? Do your friends bring you joy? In 2 Timothy 1:5 Paul writes to Timothy: Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy. Paul is telling Timothy that he feels joy when he is in his presence.

Earlier on Paul had told Timothy that he keeps him in his prayers. Do you lift your friends up in prayer, when things are going well and when they aren't. Or, do you just pray for them when they are driving you crazy and you ask God to punish them, or to make them see things from your point of view? These are the things that I would like for you to think about.

Until Next Time,

~Courtney S.~

by: Anonymous 

My youth pastor's motto is "I hate complacency." I am one of those people that like to go to a dictionary to find the real meaning of a word when someone says it. So I've got some definitions for you!

 by: Courtney  

"Hi Marcia!" said Clara. "Boy, did you miss some action last week!"

"What happened?"

"Well let me see.... Oh! There was a rumor that Brian Fitzger cheated off Mikayla's paper in geography class! He claims that he didn't but, I've told everyone that I can think of, well except you!"

"Oh Clara, you really should stop spreading rumors."

"Yea, I know! But, I can't help myself! You will pass this one on won't you? I mean, you have to! Everyone needs to know that Brian Fitzger is a cheater!"

"Oh alright, but this is the very last time! I mean it!"  

"Hi Clara! How was school?" Mom asked.

"Fine."

"You didn't by any chance spread any rumors did you?"

"Of course not mom! Why do you ask?"

"Well it seems like a lot of the kids are giving Brian Fitzger a hard time."

"Oh Mom! I had to! I'm tired of always having to be nice to that spoiled kid!"

"Well, 1st of all spreading rumors isn't nice whatsoever and even more than that it isn't godly at all. Mrs. Applewood allowed Brian to look at Mikayla's workbook because he doesn't have his own yet, and his eyesight isn't the best. He wasn't cheating."

"Oh" said Clara sheepishly.

"I think you have some apologizing to do young lady."

"Yea, me too."  

 Question Time!

I would like for you to answer the questions below and email them to me. With your answers please include you first name or nickname whatever you prefer and your age. I will then post them on CGC.    

1. Why shouldn't Clara have told had told Marcia that Brian Fitzger had cheated off of Mikayla's paper?  

2. What did Marcia do that was also wrong?  

3. How should Marcia have responded to Clara's rumor?  

4. Why did Clara have to apologize?  

5.What would you have done if you were in Marcia's position?  

6. What you have done if you were in Clara's position?  

Bible Verse  

New International Version (NIV): Psalm 34:13 reads: Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking lies.  

New King James Version (NKJV): Psalm 34:13 reads: Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking deceit.  

King James Version (KJV): Psalm 34:13 reads: Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile.      

Summary

Basically all this is saying is: Refrain form speaking things that you do not know are true. For another example:  If someone were to tell you that they think something is safe to eat or drink, but they're not positive, would you eat or drink it? No! You wouldn't. You'd go and ask someone who knew. It's the same with what you say, if you don't know if the person did it, don't say they did. Talk to the person and find out or don't say anything at all. I know that sometimes it is easier said than done, but pray to God for strength and he will help you.   

 ~God Bless! Courtney~

by: Anonymous 

Come Join The Revolution…

You join the revolution of Jesus when you give your life to him! This is not a new revolution. It started with Jesus’ coming, with women being treated with equal value and respect, with corruption challenged, with picking up the pushed out and showing up the sure of themselves, with turning the other cheek and going the extra mile, with loving the enemy and dying to self.

A revolution that started with “IT IS FINNISHED”. A revolution of LOVE, JUSTICE, GOOD NEWS AND HOPE. Courageously continued for thousands of years in the hands of teenagers. Young people refusing to slip silently through society, deciding to stand up and speak out. People who say, ‘You hate me and I’ll turn around and batter you with words and deeds of love! I will lift up the laughed at and looked down on. I will not be controlled or moulded by laws set by the media and policed by my peers. You want to label me with your brand names, stereotypes and tabloid headings.’ But we already have a label:

REVOLUTIONARIES OF JESUS!

REVOLUTIONARIES OF HOPE!

by: Anonymous

Jesus loves you and desires to have a relationship with you, and to give you a life full of joy and purpose. Why do you need Him in your life?

1. Because you have a past.

You can’t go back, but He can! The Bible says “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and forever…”(HEBREWS 13:8). He can walk into those places of sin and failure in your past, wipe the slate clean and give you a new beginning.

2. Because you need a friend.

Jesus knows the worst about you, yet He believes the best. Why? Because He sees you not as you are, but as you will be when He gets through to you. What a friend!

3. Because He holds the future.

Who else are you going to trust? In His hands you are safe and secure- today, tomorrow and for all of eternity. His Word says, “For I know the plans I have for you…plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen.” (JEREMIAH 29:11-13)

by: Anonymous 

Becoming a Christian is more drastic than getting married, but dead simple. Do you think you’re ready to join the revolution of hope and fight for Jesus? Here it is, the ABC of starting over!

      A is For ADMIT

We can’t just cruise up to the Almighty as if we’re in business. If you want to be a Christian, you’ve got to say you’re sorry. You need to be ready, with God’s help to sack every wrong action, word and thought that you know he doesn’t like, and start all over again.

      B is For BELIEVE

It’s pretty obvious, but if you want to be a Christian, you’ve got to believe in Jesus and trust that when he died on the cross, he was taking the punishment for all the wrong things you have ever done

      C is For CONSIDER

Being a Christian isn’t the soft option-you need to think it through before making your choice. When you give everything to God, some people think you’re a bit weird. It will cost you time and energy to be a real Christian. But in return you get the fullest life now and eternal life when you die.

      D is For DO IT

If you know it’s true, there’s no point hanging around. Go for it! You are not a Christian because you know the facts about Jesus-you’ve actually got to do something about it. Jesus said this: “Here I am, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in. I never said it would be easy; I only said it would be worth it”

If you have heard the truth and would like to give your life to Him pray these prayers:

Lord Jesus, I want to follow you. I know I’ve done loads of bad things. I know I don’t deserve to go to heaven. I am truly sorry and I turn away from everything that I know if wrong in my life. Thank you so much for dying in my place. Please fill me with your Holy Spirit. With you’re help, I’ll live all out for you for the rest of my life. Amen

OR

Lord Jesus Christ, I am sorry for all the things I have done wrong in my life. I ask for your forgiveness and now turn away from everything I know is wrong. Thank you for dying on the cross to set me free from my sins. Please come into my life and fill me with your Holy Spirit and be with me forever. Thank you Lord Jesus. Amen

 by: Courtney S.  

In today's society girls are known to be clothes and shopping crazy. Did you know that God cares about how we are dressed too? I know I didn't.

Actually, I'd never thought about it until about 2 days ago when my mom was listening to the Christian radio station in my area. The female radio host was reminding young women that they needed to be sure they were wearing God's wardobe and not the world's.

 Below I have two tables: One is the world's wardrobe and one is God's. Which one do you wear? Which one do you want to wear? Which one do you think God wants His princess to wear?

Which one of these do you want to wear? I know I want to wear God's wardrobe.

Are you a Christian? Do you want to be? Do you know what it is to be a Christian? If you would like to ask Jesus into your life please pray this simple prayer:  

 Dear God, I know that I have sinned, and I want you to come into my life. I know that Jesus is your Son and He died on the cross for my Sins. I ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.  

It's as simple as that. If you prayed this prayer please email us at: godlygirls@yahoo.com or email me at: christiangirlconnection@yahoo.com

You can also visit: www.godlygirlsforgod.2ya.com/christianityQ&A.htm and send Allison a question or note.  

Remember, God Loves You!   ~Courtney~  

God's Wardobe Form taking from: www.crossroad.to/text/articles/armorofgod.html 

by: Lizzy

Girls today are hurting. For real. 

We hurt because our parents are fighting. We hurt because a loved one passed away. We hurt because that really cute guy likes our best friend. We even hurt because our best friend lies to us and talks behind our backs. There are so many things in today's society that bring us down. What's a girl to do?   

Everyone gets hurt sometime or another. That is what God is there for. God is the one that is there to pick you up, dust you off, and set you back on your feet. When you hurt, tell him. When you feel like no one cares, tell him. When you feel like life has hit you like a 300 pound linebacker, by golly tell him. Do you feel me on this?    

HA-no not yet because this is just the half of it.   What do we do after God's blessed us? Do we just put God back in the magic lamp? No....  God isn't JUST there for a band-aid, he's also the Neosporin. What we all tend to do is ask God for that blessing, to remove that burden, to make it all go away, to set you free from sin, but once he does we don't say thank you.    

You may be scrathing your head about the Neosporin thing. Neosporin helps speed the healing process and keeps the "owie" from becoming infected. God takes the hurt away a lot quicker than any boy,drug,or other worldly thing ever could. FOR REAL    

That's another thing we tend to do. Sadly, some girls just walk out on God and go after that guy or alchohol and leave their faith behind. No no no no no!!!  

We have to stick with God! He stuck with us. Romans 5:8 "But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him." (The Message)      

Okay so let's shorten this up. God still loved us enough to sacrifice his son for us when we were absolutely worthless sinners. I kid you not, for real he did it!   A hot guy can only do so much for you and then leave you hurt again. God will never leave you or hurt you. For real.    

So let's sum all of this up (I know I've jumped around so much but I promise I have points).  

1. We all get hurt emotionally and God is there to help you back up

2. Praise God through the tough times

3. Praise God through the best times

4. God heals us,makes us whole,and works faster than boys,drugs,or alcohol ever could

5. Stick To The Faith

6. God loves us so much,and we should show him that love through hurt,and the joy!!! 7. Lizzy overuses the phrase "for real"  

Love, Princess Lizzy-Daughter of The Most High King

by: Elizabeth O.

Read the Bible,
Pray.
Worship and obey,
Each and every day;
And do it all God's way!

 by: HB

Part 3: Overcoming the Excuses...But...

In Part 1 I talked about Viewing Others As God Sees Them; You do see their sin. You do see their worth as God’s creation. Then you choose to love them despite their sin, just as God sees us.

In Part 2 I talked about Letting them know what you think about them. This includes praying for those opportunities, making opportunities out of everyday situations and random acts of kindness.

Maybe you’ve read Part 1 and Part 2. And maybe you are thinking, “But…”

If you are, this part is for you.

But she is still so mean. But he still frowns at me every day. But she doesn’t try to get along. But she won’t listen when I’m trying to be nice. But nothing’s changing at home. But he doesn’t care about the things that matter most to me, even God. But she still yells. But she doesn’t deserve nice treatment. But he hurt everyone so badly. But she’s not sorry.

Do any one of those sound like the things you might say in your mind? Do you feel this way toward someone in your heart? Do you see no hope, no change, nothing new, and just give up?

There might be times in your life, and situations, where you need to separate yourself from some person or group of people because they really aren’t changing and they are affecting your walk with God. But, most of the time, God has the people He does in our lives for a reason; that we could point them to Him!

Even when you can’t see God working in their lives, you shouldn’t give up. Even when you can’t see any changes, you shouldn’t give in. Yes, that’s right – you still have the duty and privilege of showing them compassion. If they ask you why, you will be able to tell them about God’s compassion for you. If someone else makes fun of you for doing the right thing, or asks you why you would be nice to someone who is awful to you, you can tell that person about God’s love. You will be able to tell them that God wants to give them the same mercy and grace!

But…

You still are struggling to decide to do the right thing. There are so many excuses. But guess what? When you are before God, what decisions will you have wished you would have made? Make the right decision now.

First, get in mind the person or people who you are having trouble reaching out to.

Now, ask God to help you decide to think of them as He does.

Maybe get out a piece of paper, a journal, or something you can keep. You can write something like this: I have decided to think about X as God does. I have asked Him to help me in deciding this.

This is the next step: Ask God to help you see opportunities.

Maybe on that paper or journal you can write: I have asked God to help me find opportunities to reach out to X. I am not going to base my actions and feeling on what X does, but rather on God’s goodness and mercy. I have asked God to help me use these opportunities wisely, that is, so I will point to God in what I do and say. I’m not perfect, and I realize that. But I commit myself, today, to being godly. That is, seeking what God wills and living it out, by deciding to look past the sin to see the people God created.

Does that make sense?

Maybe not.

Because, if I got what I deserved…well, I’ve sinned. Sinners go to hell. Hell is real and some people die every day that aren’t saved. They go to hell. I’ve been saved. My heart cries out for people to turn to God. If I can do anything to help them see their way is not God’s way, and to lead them to God’s way or a little closer to God’s way, then I am doing my part.

I challenge you – commit yourself to God. Submit yourself to God. And reach out to others as He provides the opportunities.

by: Emma G.

“Give thanks to the God of Heaven. His love endures forever”

PSALM 136:26

The year is 279AD, you’re in Rome and you’ve just met the love of your life. The sun is shining, the birds are tweeting and you’re skipping along until you stop, dead in your tacks. You’ve just remembered, marriage has been banned-all single men are being packed off to the army, now what?

There was one priest called Valentine. He loved God and knew that marriage was from God; he’d been secretly
marrying couples anyway. On February 14^th he was caught and executed- leaving a love note for the jailer’s daughter before he died. Since then, lovers have been exchanging notes, cards and gifts on this day and so it has become known as Valentine’s Day. So how about you? Did the postman pull a muscle trying to squeeze your vast mountains of cards through the letterbox, or was it as expected, no secret admirers and the one person you thought might spend $1 on a card forgot or ‘thought you weren’t bothered about that sort of thing!’

Before you get too depressed or excited, remember one thing- God loves you and reckons you’re amazing! ‘Huh, little consolation’ you’re thinking? Well Jesus did more than send you a poxy WHSmith card with a cheesy rhyme. How’s this for a Valentine message? ‘I love you so much that I will give my life so that if you believe in me then you won’t die but live forever’. Now that’s true love- “God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, Jesus Christ, so that whoever believes in Him may not be lost, but have eternal life!” (John 3:16). God loves you so much that He actually let His Son Jesus give up His life for you! And now, you’re free to spend all of eternity with him.

Try to spend some time today thinking about Jesus’ passion for you, the ultimate act of love. Remember, there is no greater love than that- you can’t possibly be more loved by anyone. God IS love, true love comes from Him and through Him and by Him. On this day, when love is celebrated; remember to tell Him how much you love Him too!

by: HB

Part 2: Let them know what you think about them

If you are serious about reaching out to others through God's love, you will learn to view them as God sees them, as we talked about in Part 1. Now that you know how to get your own heart right about this issue, we are going to talk about how to take some action!

1. The best way to find opportunities to share God's love, is to pray for those opportunities to come! Spending time praying for the person's heart, for your own heart, for the situations that could come up when you see them, and for situations to come about that makes it easy to point to God, are all very important. It not only shows your desire to serve, but it gives you a desire to serve. I guess God knew that sometimes it's not easy to do the right thing - in fact, sometimes we REALLY don't want to do anything but teach that person a lesson or two. But that's not going to win their heart to God.

2. The best way to use opportunities to share God's love, is to make opportunities! That is, if someone drops a pencil, spring over to pick it up. Does your little annoying sister like the blue skittles best? Then pick out all your blue skittles and give them to her! Does that teacher just keep frowning? Maybe bring her a note to wish her a good day. Does that kid look lonely over there now that he has no one to pick on? Ask if he wants to eat lunch over with you! You never know when your kindness might change someone's whole day, and a day can bring about a lot; it only takes one moment to realize need for God, only one moment to ask God into your life, but a lifetime of walking with Him to become like Christ. Maybe they are trying and just need someone to be nice enough to give them a chance. Maybe they don't know how. It's not up to us to change them, but it is up to us to give them the opportunity to know God can change everything!

By giving them your best, your time, your talents, your kindness...you are telling someone that they are worth it in your eyes. If they can see how much you love God, they are sure to see that God must think they are worth it. If they ask you why you were nice, why you paid attention, or why you gave to them, you can tell them that it's because Jesus noticed you, paid the price for your sins, gave up everything for you - and this thing you just did is nothing compared to what He can and does give!

In summary, the best opportunities, are the ones where God is the focus, your heart is in it, and you don't let excuses keep you back. Wait, that last part sounds like Part 3...that's next time ;)

by: Allison

    How many times have you grumbled or complained when your mom says, "Please load the dish washer," or "I need you to rake the leaves this afternoon."? How many more times have you obeyed, but inside yourself you don't want to be doing the chore? You see, there is a difference; obedience is an outward act, while submission in an inward heart attitude. God wants us to not only obey but also to submit our hearts. 

James 4:7 Submit yourselves, then, to God.

    So how do you become submissive? Respond cheerfully, see your responsibilities as serving the Lord, and be willing and ready to do whatever asked of you. However, the first step is to come before Jesus and ask Him to change your heart. If you humble yourself, He will be more than willing to come and give you an attitude check. 

James 4:6 God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.

    I encourage you to evaluate your attitude as you go into a certain job. Are you wanting to serve? Would God be pleased with your attitude? From this attitude God will bring great joy and rewards. Keep it up!

By the way Jeremiah 29 is also the same chapter that tells us of God's wonderful plans for us - He said He knows the plans He has for you, to give you hope and a future!

So that was my sitting-on-a-rock moment of the day. What God did in my heart brought PEACE into a very trying moment. So I guess there's three words? Okay, maybe I should just say, all I need is...
JESUS.

That's one Word. :)

by: HB

Part 1: Viewing Others As God Sees Them

There’s the girl in class that always acts like a snob, the boy next door that always breaks stuff when he comes over, the man at the nursing home who yells a lot for no reason, the toddler that is so selfish she can’t let anyone sleep tonight, the old lady at the store that glares when she rings up the merchandise, the teacher that never smiles or answers gently, the girl at church who can’t seem to say anything nice, and the sibling that constantly teases and taunts in a way that frustrates and annoys...how do we love these people? Probably none of the ones in that list sound loveable! How do we reach out to them with God's love and show them the way?

1.       You do see their sin. God in His perfect love has to judge us against the Law, which shows we are sinners. He, being perfect love, does not act like we aren’t sinners; He does not act like there’s no problem, or like there’s no pain going to come from our sin. He tells us the truth, but He doesn’t leave us there. He worked through the ages to bring us hope – Jesus died for our sins, and rose again to give us eternal life, if we believe! Romans 3:23; Romans 5:21

2.       You do see their worth as God’s creation. God tells us we are fearfully and wonderfully made! We are made in His image, and we are precious in His sight! He loves us so much that He cares about the details in our lives – like when we get up, when we go to bed, when we cry, even what we think about! He cares about us more than He even cares about the birds and flowers we see, and look how much He has provided for them in every way!  Psalm 139

3.       You choose to love them despite their sin, just as God sees us. That is, God chose to love us while we were still filthy, dirty, proud sinners. He gave it all for us – Jesus sacrificed His life for us, and willingly took on the sin of the world – along with the shame, pain, and awfulness of our sins. If God could give us such love despite how much we deserved the punishment, can we do anything but give all we can to show love to those He puts in our lives? It might hurt sometimes, it might get messy sometimes, it might take some sacrifices, but once we view others as God sees them, it will be worth it! 1 John 4:19

We have to see past their sins and to their souls.  We are just like the very people that hurt us, annoy us, treat us unfairly,  are selfish...we are sinners. If it were not for God's grace, we would not have Jesus as our Savior! It is an honor, a duty, and a blessing to tell others about this change God gives in our hearts when we love like Jesus does.

by: Allison

            In Matthew 28:19 Jesus makes a command to go and make disciples. Wait a minute, you might think, how am I supposed to make disciples if I don’t know what a disciple is? Well I’m about to share with you something called discipleship which is the act of making disciples.

             Discipleship is basically reproducing your life. Jesus had disciples, he had 12. He encouraged and taught them. However we aren’t Jesus so we teach and encourage our “disciples” to follow Jesus and we show them how that is done.

There are a few things to keep in mind when you go to disciple someone.

1. Ask someone more spiritually mature than you to disciple you.
2. Spend time with Jesus.
3. Live what you share. Sometimes we can disciple others just by the way we live our life and by the choices that we make. Always make sure you are a living a life fully dedicated to Jesus and others will want that and copy you.
4. You may not want to tell the person you are discipling you are discipling them. Some instances you tell them and some you don’t. Use good judgment.
5. Only disciple those of your same gender.

Jesus will greatly reward you for investing in the life of someone else. You are doing a great thing to advance the kingdom of heaven!

by: Hillary-Beth

 Our lives aren't stories about ourselves.

We love to tell about ourselves. Freewebs, Facebook, Blogs, Myspace, and other sites enable us to share freely anything we want to say about us. Some of these sites encourage us to focus solely on ourselves; my favorite color, favorite flavor, the way I like to listen to music or watch TV, or even not as trivial things like my school courses and my jobs or my ministries and my favorite Bible study. Does there come a point that I start to believe that life is all about my story to the world?

As Christians we should realize there's a bigger story going on. And honestly, I don't have to be a part of it in order for the plot to carry through!

God is called the author; author of our faith, our hope, our salvation. Taking this analogy, when we tell our story, our theme should be that of God’s work in our life; our personal and very precious salvation and new life through Christ.

Hebrews 12:2
Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

God is the hero of the story; Jesus. Jesus knew the law required a perfect sacrifice or else we could not come to be God’s children, so Jesus willingly died on the cross for the sins of the world. Because he was God, he rose again, to give us eternal life!

Our story should be focused on the hero. It doesn't mean we are unimportant; it doesn't mean we don't have cool things going on. It does mean there's more that we can't see, that we need to trust and thank God with our hearts set sure on the last chapter of our known history.

God was working ever since man fell in order to restore all creation. It hasn't happened completely yet of course. What has happened is Jesus has made it possible for us to start being restored. Not only will we be restored, but the book of Revelation and other prophetic books promise that there will be a new earth and a new heaven; everything created will be made pure again. That is something great to look forward to!

Sometimes it’s so hard to not get caught up in just our own story. Next time you are telling about yourself, try to stop and think: what is the theme of my story? Just celebrating myself, or celebrating how God has worked in me? You might want to take a little time to prepare, so that you know what you will say about who you are – a very awesomely made Child of God, with a very awesome story to tell!

Tell us your story! godlygirls@yahoo.com

by: Hillary-Beth

The Bible tells us a lot about judgment. While we need to be wise about who we trust, the Bible tells us to not judge others' motives or service.

How can I tell when I’m judging their motives or service? I am judging their motives when I say they aren’t preaching, teaching, or doing other ministry for God’s glory; when I say they are doing it for selfish reasons. I am judging their service when I look at their work as being for themselves and not the Lord. These are sins on my part, because the Bible says not to judge these things. If things are being done for the Lord, He can and will deal with the people, either to reward for their faithfulness or punish for their wickedness. But I cannot know another’s heart fully like God does, so I cannot judge. Besides, it’s God’s job.

 1 Corinthians 4:1-5

1So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the secret things of God. 2Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. 3I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. 4My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. 5Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God.

Philippians 1:12-22

15It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. 16The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. 17The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains.^{[b] 18But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.}

Another thing the Bible says is, don't judge others' personal convictions.

What is a personal conviction? That’s something that the Bible doesn’t talk about specifically, but of course there are general principles that can be applied. It is how these Bible principles are interpreted by different Christians that varies.

For example, some people firmly believe that they should not watch any movies with ratings over G or PG, and some people believe it’s okay to watch R rated movies for the right reasons.

Some people listen to a lot of secular music, and some people listen to no secular music. Some people believe it’s okay to drink a little, and some people believe it’s never okay to drink.

Some people believe they should not be in a certain profession because it involves too many temptations, while others say that Christians should be in every valid profession because they can be a light in the workplace where there are few who are pointing to the Lord.

These are Bible-based convictions; derived by study of the Scriptures, not just personal feelings one way or another. To develop my personal convictions, I need to take the topic to the Bible. If someone disagrees, I do not argue. If they are more strict or less strict than me, and they seem to do what they do with joy and for God’s glory, I should look at Scripture and see if it can be interpreted to include their convictions. If I look and see and believe they are sinning, I can confront them. If I am the one who is less strict, I need to make sure I do not lead my brother and sister in Christ outside their convictions, which is sin on both parts.

 Romans 14:1-8

1Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters. 2One man's faith allows him to eat everything, but another man, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. 3The man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him. 4Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.

5One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. 6He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. 8If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.Do judge other believers who do what the Bible says is sin.

Sin is outlined in many passages in the Bible. If I see a brother or sister in Christ in sin, it is my responsibility to let God work through me in any way I am given to help to restore them. God will work in their heart, and through the believers around them to support them in becoming more like Christ. All of this is done in love.

Here is a specific example from the New Testament.

 1 Corinthians 5

1It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that does not occur even among pagans: A man has his father's wife.I can’t have fellowship with my brothers and sisters who are living in persistent sin, but if they say they would repent and need help I am to be there for them as God makes the way.

 6Don't you know that a little yeast works through the whole batch of dough? 7Get rid of the old yeast that you may be a new batch without yeast—as you really are.

9I have written you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people— 10not at all meaning the people of this world who are immoral, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters. In that case you would have to leave this world. 11But now I am writing you that you must not associate with anyone who calls himself a brother but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or a slanderer, a drunkard or a swindler. With such a man do not even eat.

12What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? 13God will judge those outside. "Expel the wicked man from among you."^[b]

God will judge all. If we judge, our purpose is to correct sin in a believer’s life, and to, in love, help restore them for God’s purposes and glory.

by: Anonymous 

Ever had someone tell you to do something, and you go off and do it, but in reality your heart’s not in it - anyone who can hear you under your breath knows you do not have a good attitude. You are murmuring about some aspect of the task ahead or some fault in the person who gave your directions.

In the back of your mind, you know you can get into trouble by disrespecting authority outright. You may even know that even thinking bad things against your authority can get you into trouble - maybe you’ve slipped and said something aloud you meant only for your private thoughts. What does the Bible have to say about authority?

Go to: Ecclesiastes 10:20

Here’s a neat paraphrase:
Don't bad-mouth your leaders, not even under your breath,
And don't abuse your betters, even in the privacy of your home.
Loose talk has a way of getting picked up and spread around.
Little birds drop the crumbs of your gossip far and wide. (The Message)

Children must honor their parents, wives must honor their husbands, employees must honor their employers, and church members must honor their pastors (Ephesians 6:1-3; Ephesians 5:33; Titus 2:9-11; 1 Thessalonians 5:12;).

Think about it practically; if you aren’t harboring these feelings and words in secret, then you are certainly not going to slip up and say something bad, or constantly be guarding yourself when you are around those you might think badly of! Jesus knew that; in Matthew 15:19 He says that our sins come out from our heart. If you want your actions to be blameless, your heart needs to be pure. Only Jesus can make your heart pure. It is something that He starts the day you are saved and continues to work in you until you meet Him face to face. Have you let Him start working in your heart?

“Take, me, make me
All You want me to be
That's all I'm asking, all I'm asking

Welcome to this heart of mine
I've buried under prideful vines
Grown to hide the mess I've made
Inside of me
Come decorate, Lord

Open up the creaking door
And walk upon the dusty floor
Scrape away the guilty stains
Until no sin or shame remain
Spread Your love upon the walls
And occupy the empty halls
Until the man I am has faded
No more doors are barricaded

Chorus
Come inside this heart of mine
It's not my own
Make it home
Come and take this heart and make it
All Your own
Welcome home

Take a seat, pull up a chair
Forgive me for the disrepair
And the souvenirs from floor to ceiling
Gathered on my search for meaning
Every closet's filled with clutter
Messes yet to be discovered
I'm overwhelmed, I understand
I can't make this place all that You can

I took the space that You placed in me
Redecorated in shades of greed
And I made sure every door stayed locked
Every window blocked, and still You knocked
 

Take me, make me
All You want me to be
That's all I'm asking, all I'm asking”

~Shaun Groves

by: HB 

The month of December brings to mind snow.
Bringing that deeper: to me, snow brings to mind purity.

Someone once made a great analogy. As God’s children we should be pure, not exposing ourselves to temptations to sin when we could avoid the tempting situation.
If someone exposes herself anyhow, it is like a she wears a beautiful white wedding dress into a coal mine. Of course the dress would be, very likely, completely ruined. What a picture that is!

Satan says:
“One _____ never hurt anybody!”
(insert: lie, morsel of gossip, drink, questionable movie)

He’s trying to convince you that you should just go along even though deep inside you at least kind-of know that what you are thinking is wrong.
Don’t believe that lie. Any sin is impurity, and we are called to be pure like Christ. So even “one time” is sin, and sin that you recognize is always sin you can avoid.

Satan says:
“Don‘t worry about later, what do you want right now?”

He wants us to think about this moment and this moment alone, not matter what the consequences for the future might be. Sometimes those consequences can be devastating! Can you think of a time that, if you’d known what would happen because of your actions, you made a mess that you could hardly believe? Then don’t believe that lie; the lie that right now is more important.

You may think:
"I‘m not bad; I believe in God, I don‘t need Jesus.”

Just believing in God isn’t enough, because all of us have a problem.

James 2:19 says “You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.”

That problem is sin, specifically that sin is pride if you say that you do not need Jesus. But Jesus knew our problem! He is our Redeemer; it is because of the sacrifice of His life for ours that we can be God’s children.

Romans 3:23-24
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

by: Allison

 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.” Matthew 5:8 Don’t you want to see God? Be able to look into those just but oh so loving eyes and to hear Him say, “I love you, you have been a faithful daughter.” However, as the verse says we must first become pure in heart. If you are willing God will meet you and take you on a journey to purity.

 I like to compare my unclean, impure heart to a trash can. We like to fill it up with all kinds of junk. God wants to take the trash out of our lives. Sometimes it will hurt and take some time just like you have to put a little extra effort into pulling a snotty tissue that’s stuck off the bottom of a trash can.

 In the process of becoming blameless and pure God is going to put us through tests and expose things in our lives that need to be removed. Trials will help strengthen our spiritual muscles.

 In order to get rid of the junk you have to set boundaries. Tell yourself gossip is not okay, to save your emotions and feelings for marriage, not to compare with others or be jealous and that you are going to yield to God’s plan. You need to read God’s word until it penetrates your heart not just your mind.

 Find someone who is spiritually secure to speak into your life and be willing to hear what they have to say, even if it hurts. They will be able to walk with you and help you through the journey.

 If you stay accountable and dig deep into the journey God has for you the reward will be priceless!

 “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” Hebrews 12:1

 by: Hillary-Beth

We have to learn to recognize truth. We do this by reading the Bible some each day so we know what it says. The Bible is God’s Word and is true.

We can then recognize what is error. Error does not agree with what the Bible says. It’s things that aren’t true. Some things aren’t clear as to whether they are truth or error.

Some things aren’t addressed outright in the Bible. But the principles are applicable; that is, something in the Bible will be able to guide you and will let you know what God says about it. Sometimes it’s just more general, as in new technology that wasn’t around isn’t mentioned in the Bible, but purity is.

Knowing what is true and what is false clears the path for change. We can’t change and be different if we don’t see that we’ve been believing something that is a lie. God will show us what needs to change if we ask Him to. He will change our lives!

To change is to overcome, and build new. We are new when we’ve trusted Christ because He washes our sins away and frees us from the grip sin had on us.

Since we are free, we can have passion for God and for telling others how He freed us!

We can:

• Pass on! The knowledge
• Point out! The error
• Pray for! The change

Only God can change others. But we can, in love, pray for them.

We can also encourage people to keep on going when it is hard for them.

When your friends or family are overcoming sin through Christ, don’t forget to also encourage them to keep passing on the things they have learned, and are learning! God will work through them like He works through you.

by: Anonymous 

Maybe you’ve bee in school all summer, or maybe you’ve had the summer off. Maybe you are in a private school, maybe you’re home schooled, or maybe you go to a public school. Maybe there’s lots of people around you all the time, or maybe just a few.

No matter what, you can glorify God in your unique place! You are called to honor God, right where you are.

1. Doing your best, for the Lord!

People notice, and then you can explain why you do your best, when the opportunity comes.

Worried? It’s not being a teacher’s pet or a stuck-up….IF you are humble and your motive is to please God! God made you wonderful, and you honor Him when you do your best. That’s what matters. 

2. Witnessing through school supplies?

Have a notebook or binder? Buying pencils? Decorate them to say "Jesus loves you!" or with some Christian lyrics that praise God!

School supplies decorated with a theme pointing to God can be an awesome witness, not just for classroom settings, but also while you are in the doctor‘s or dentist office, shopping around town, on a trip, with a home school group, anywhere!!

Not only that, but I bet it will keep you encouraged throughout the year. Besides, they can be fun to make. 

3. Mean girls - being light and hope is hard but worthwhile.

Personal Story:

4. How are you spiritually prepared this year? 

Here’s some quizzes that might be cool to start off the school-year with! Quizzes For Your Life!

5. Sharing in love, being unashamed 

When someone asks you about your schooling, say it with spirit, and try to turn the conversation to point to God and how He is working in your life! Even the topic of school can be a way to witness, then! Don’t get impatient with questions or embarrassed.

6. Pray 

Whether your curriculum includes many of God’s truths or not, you can be growing closer to Him by reading the Bible and then seeing how your schoolwork can teach you more about God, the people He loves and made in His image, and the awesome world He created.  Pray about tests, about what you are gaining in knowledge, and trust God that He will use all these things for His glory in your life.

by: Hillary-Beth

Have you ever heard the story of Solomon? A great king and really wise, right? But then, at the end, he started to “love many foreign women.”

Ever wonder how he got all the way to such an obvious sin? Why was the ending of his story a total nightmare?

Solomon was told by God to stay away from women from other countries because they did not know God and did not love Him. They would make it hard for Solomon to love God. So how could Solomon end up marrying them?! He knew what God said, but he slowly developed a love for exactly what was against God. He loved sin above loving God.

When you compromise, first you admire from a distance, then you associate with the thing, then you form a deep relationship with it. It ends in corruption.

That is, first you make yourself believe you really aren’t sinning it’s just looking at it. Then you start to feel like it’s a part of your identity, who you are - it excites you to think about it or hear news about it, and you obtain much knowledge and familiarity with it. Then you do it habitually and it is a part of you. You aren’t pure any more.

Solomon held fast to these dependences (knowing it’s wrong) He had sensual love, not genuine love. He turned his heart away from God. It didn’t just happen. He pursued it. That means he took steps toward it.

When we love something above God, we take steps toward it and away from God. We hang out with the people we shouldn’t be with again and again. Or we re-visit a bad website again and again. We lie to cover up lies because we don’t want to be found out. We leave the bad radio station on the preset buttons because we are lazy. We turn the TV to the station our parents don’t want us to watch again anyhow when they leave. And more.

You cannot compromise on even one conviction and be holy. You are called to holiness.

*1 Peter 1:13* Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. 14As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. 15But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy."

Don’t surrender to other gods! See, you might think you can love both God and other things, but you can’t. Solomon couldn’t have loved anyone God told him not to associate with if he loved God!

Why did Solomon disobey? To fulfill his wants and needs. Really, he let his pride take over. Because God promises to provide for us what is best for us, but Solomon couldn’t trust God.

What things do you need?

Do you trust God that He can provide, or do you feel like you must disobey to get these things?

Everything you admire will come in you, possessing you. If you are admiring God above all, what He wills you to do, you will do.

If you are in sin, know this: The Lord heals the broken, collapsed, and surrendered. You have the power to walk away through Jesus. He broke the power of sin and death with His death and resurrection! If you know this, you know you can turn to Him now, either for the first time or the 100^th time! If you’re wise, you will let God deal with your sin.

The Lord was angry with Solomon about his turned heart. Solomon did not surrender, though. There’s the cycle: First there’s Compromise, then Corruption and finally, Collapse, unless there’s a Change.

The Lord raised an adversary, which means an enemy. It was a pagan, heathen, adversary to be against Israel. God used people who were against him to punish for Solomon’s sin.

Your life collapses around you; all of your dreams, desires, and goals come crashing down when you compromise.

The fatal step is when you say, “I know it’s wrong, but I’ll do it anyway.”

Instead of doing it, stand against the temptation, and really know and believe that God will save you from it. God will do the fighting for you; all you have to do is stand.

*Ephesians 6:13* Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

He will provide the way out. *1 Corinthians 10:13* No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.

by: Kylee

1) Get alone with God
 -try a bedroom, garage, outside, etc.

by: Jamie B 

Have you ever noticed how many rumors you here in just one day?

You may not think what you're hearing is a rumor, but The American Hetitage Dictionary defines the word rumor as:

 ru·mor n.

1. A piece of unverified information of uncertain origin usually spread by word of mouth.

2. Unverified information received from another; hearsay.

This means that anything that you hear about someone that doesn't come out of their mouth is a rumor. Also, gossip is announced as a synonym to rumor. The bible clearly states in many places that gossip and people who gossip are both very wrong.

The Bible states that gossiping is evil: Psalm 34:13 Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.

The words of a gossip will ruin friendships and lives:

Proverbs 18:8 The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to a man's inmost parts.

Proverbs 16:28 A perverse man stirs up dissension, and a gossip separates close friends.

Proverbs 11:13 A gossip betrays a confidence, but a trustworthy man keeps a secret.

The Bible clearly states that any gossip will betray confidence and can't be trusted- Do you want to be defined as that by God's Holy Word? However, the Bible also gives information about what will happen after gossip stops: Proverbs 26:20 Without wood a fire goes out; without gossip a quarrel dies down.

The Bible sets clear rules about not gossiping: Ephesians 4:29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

And His Word also informs about what will happen when He comes back, and what he fears:

2 Corinthians 12:20 For I am afraid that when I come I may not find you as I want you to be, and you may not find me as you want me to be. I fear that there may be quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, factions, slander, gossip, arrogance and disorder. Matthew 12:36 But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken.

Lastly, in the book of Psalm, David is asking "Lord, who will get into your house?" Psalm 15:1-3 1 LORD, who may dwell in your sanctuary? Who may live on your holy hill? 2 He whose walk is blameless and who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from his heart 3 and has no slander on his tongue, who does his neighbor no wrong and casts no slur on his fellowman.

These are the verses that talk about gossiping. What God thinks of it (Evil), What it can do to lives and friendships (Destroy Them!), The rules about gossiping (Don't Do It!!!!), and The consequenses.

The Lord says that no man who does wrong to his neighbor and says wrong things about him will be able to house in his sanctuary; He says that we have to speak the truth from our hearts, and if we do not, we will be judged by him.

Next time you hear your friend spreading rumors, now that you know the true definition of rumor, ask her to stop, politely tell her what she's doing, and give her these scriptures to guide her.

All of these verses were found in the New International Version

by: HB 

Song Lyrics Devotional Two

Some Thoughts: This song was definitely inspired by Job.

It's hard to be real.

We. just. can't. do that. What if someone, anyone, actually knew?

Actually knew all of our sins? Actually knew all of our weaknesses? Actually knew all of our questions, our doubts, our fears.....our dreams, all of what makes us have a sense of security...and all of what doesn't?

And when we dare to ask God some things, He isn't always going to answer the way we think He is, of course, because His ways aren't our ways. 

To relate to human things (I know this is actually backwards) the way God sometimes responds reminds me of a grandpa; ever been having a serious talk with someone, and asked a question, to which they replied with question? Not just any question, but one that really answers yours and more, using a completely different (and in wise cases, higher) perspective.

Point is, God knows how to shut us up (even though I'm sure He's not doing it just for that reason, haha), and wake us up.

Since He is not trapped by any of the things that restrain us as humans (time, location, our whole human nature and sin and death and power and words/expressions and all), why don't we trust Him?

The Challenge: Trust God enough to be honest out loud to Him. You know the things you try to hide. Instead of distancing yourself, go ahead and be real. Stand in awe of Him as you think of how great His works are, and praise Him for those works today!

Where Were You

by Todd Agnew

The Lyrics:"I thought up all the questions that my human mind could bring
And laid them out before the Lord
And demanded a reason for these things
I asked about inequality and about the success of evil men
But what was I to say to Him
When He answered with this question

Where were you when I split the sky and sea
Where were you when I taught the lion to roar
Where were you when I made electricity
Fall from the sky in the middle of a thunderstorm
Where were you

I had no response, I had no reply
As the One who spoke and is the Truth opened up my eyes
I laid my time of doubt at the feet of the Infinite
But what was left for me to say
When He answered with this question

CHORUS

Where were you when I put stars in the sky
Where were you when I taught the eagle to fly
Where were you when I made that little child look just like
Her mom but she had her Daddy's eyes
Where were you"

by: HB

Song Lyrics Devotional One

Ready to Fly

by FFH

Some thoughts: Sometimes when we are close to God, we feel like we just want to stop right now and be with Him forever starting right now! As we live the rest of our lives, we can rely on the God who's prepared the way for us to be with Him in eternity, and we can share the longings of complete freedom and the tastes we have of it today, with those around us.

The Challenge: Pray that God would show through you this freedom of the cares and burdens of the world, the freedom of being in Him, to someone sometime this day, and look for the opportunities! Thank Him for the freedoms you've experienced in your walk with Him.

The Lyrics: "I've been here grounded far too long
I'm ready to see the open wide
Ready to sing a different song
I've seen my troubles 'long the way
I want to sail towards the sun
I want to turn another page
I'm on my way

I'm ready to fly
I'm ready to soar
I'm ready to leave this world behind
I'm ready to open up the door
I'm ready to fly
I'm ready to spread my wings across the sky
I think it's time
I'm ready to go
I'm ready to fly

You've told me I could rise above
Like an eagle on the wind
I can glide upon Your love
But I feel the pull of gravity
And it's a weight upon my shoulders
I can't stay here any longer
I've gotta be free

And it's been so long
Since I've seen the bright morning sun
Through the early morning horizon
And it's been so long
Since I've felt the air under my wings
And seen all of these things
From above"

by: Oksana

Have you ever thought of what will happen to you after you die? Will you turn out to be an animal, or will you be a spirit walking around the earth, or will your body be just in the ground, or will you spend eternity with God in Heaven, or in Hell where the Demons are with their king Satan?

People believe in many things, but I believe in one true God, the Creator of Heaven and the earth. People say that they don't believe in God. Look around you! Your chair that you're sittting on is made from a tree and God created that tree so that you might one day sit on it.

Have you ever wondered who made the sky or the beautiful nature? God is the Creator; He even created YOU for His purpose! He made each and everyone of us for Him, that we'll be humbled enough to just worship Him for who He is!

People say that they don't believe in Hell or Heaven, God nor Satan and his helpers, Demons. We were all created in the sin nature. You might know the story of Adam and Eve in the beginning of the Bible, they were the first ones to sin because of temptation from serpent, who represented the Devil. Later on in the History, God gave His one and only Son to come to earth just to die for you and me, on the cross. Even though we weren't even born, He did it once and for all. This is really interesting; I was amazed when I heard it. When Jesus was on the cross, you and I were on His mind. Can you believe that??? I think that is just SO amazing!

The only way to get to Heaven is through Jesus Christ. In the Bible it says that you cannot see the Kingdom of God unless you ask Jesus into your heart.

Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. The next time when you have something bad happens to you, run to Jesus; He'll be there to help you. So many times we run to our friends, but they don't do what Jesus would do. He knows what you're going through because He's been there and He is God, who is all knowing and all powerful! When He came to earth, He was fully God and man. So Jesus is what each and every one of us needs.

 It's your choice to come and follow Him or live a sinful life. It seems that sin is fun, only until it gets worse enough that your world is falling apart.  

After you make a choice to come and follow Him, He'll change your life. Jesus even said that He's knocking on the door of your heart right now and if you'll let Him in, He'll come and have a relationship with you, like friend to friend, but He'll be your best friend. It's a simple prayer, you just ask Jesus to come into your life and say that you're sorry for what you have done. If you believe and confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and that God raised Him from the death, you'll be saved.

You might say that you are a good person, that's why you'll go to Heaven. Let's see... the 10 laws of God. Have you ever lied? If you say 'no', you just lied! Have you ever stolen ANYTHING? Small or big, even a pencil or a penny? Have you ever looked on the opposite sex with lust? That's comitting adultery! Let's see... that's 3 laws of the 10, if you said 'yes' to just one, in the Bible it says that if you broke one, you broke them all!!! If you say "I'm a perfect man", then why did Jesus come to die if you are perfect? I tell you something, Jesus was the only unsinful man, who came without sin to die for you and me so that we can become like Him!

 I do believe that there's Demons and Satan, who comes only to steal, kill and destroy. If you need Jesus, don't wait! I also want to tell you something else. When you ask Jesus to come into your heart, life will not be perfect; you will have trials. You'll be persecuted for what choice you made, but at least Jesus will be by your side to help you, and when you get to Heaven,  you'll have a great reward for suffering for Christ. You might be saying "Oh, I have to read Bible and pray 3 times a day or I have to change in this and that" No!

 From my point of view, when I came to know Christ, He changed me and I wanted to read Bible, I wanted to talk to Him (praying) and change. In the Bible it says that when you become a beliver, set apart from the world, for you are not of the world any more, but God's children. Your life is nothing without Jesus! Jesus loves you SO much that He stretched out His hands on the cross and died for you. Don't wait...

James 1:19

"My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry."   But we don't always do this, so....  

There you have it, folks! You have just been agitated
enough to say (or do) something that immediately you wish you could take
back. It happens to all of us. Other things happen in our lives {things we were not anticipating in our plans} and our "emotional" backpack becomes so heavy, that when that extra weight is added, your "backpack" topples over, pouring out and revealing a flood of emotions that should have been dealt with earlier.

There is the anger of thinking that there is no one there for you, or has cared enough to bother; the embaressment of believing that you stick out like a sore thumb because of your problems; or the resentment of your "perfect" friends and their so-called perfect lives. Enough emotions to drive anyone insane - but before you regret anything that happens, think about this: Will the things I am saying or the actions I am carrying out bring me closer or farther from God?!

Treat everone the way that you would treat Jesus. If He were to walk into
the room, would He be proud of what He sees?!

Note: This article has been slightly altered, and the brackets were added by an editor. The scripture reference seemed to fit so we also added it.

 by: Christina  

When you begin to become a teenager, many changes happen to your body and you begin to mature. You also learn many new things. It’s difficult in the ungodliness of this world not to accidentally learn trashy thoughts. In fact, you can’t watch just about any movie without hearing a profanity or seeing something that’s inappropriate.

When you were little, you wouldn’t have known what the bad word was or what they were doing was so wrong. But, because you’re older, you understand. You’re not so naïve anymore.

Often, groups of girls talk about things, and there will be one girl who doesn’t understand what they are saying and the other girls will make fun of her and call her a baby. I believe that it’s wonderful when there are still naïve girls, girls who don’t know “everything”.

I used to be one of those girls. My parents kept me out of the world and what, for most people, are perfectly normal things and sayings. However, as I got older, I eventually discovered these things for myself. I learned profane words and understood inappropriate conversations.

It wasn’t all learned at one time, of course, it was a slow process. But before, there was a sense of innocence, sweetness. I thought the world was all delightful and a wonderful place to be. I’ve since discovered it’s not. If you’re still young, treasure those years. Be thankful to God you don’t understand vulgar sayings and trash talk.

by: Kimberly

We’re all afraid of something, whether we want to admit it or not. Be it snakes, heights, spiders, bees, disease … the list goes on and on.

How can we deal with fear? We need peace.

How do we get it?

Only God can give us the peace we need. Instead of worrying about the little things, we need to trust God. He will protect you, and take care of all your needs.

Nahum 1:7

The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble;
and he knoweth them that trust in him.

Isaiah 41:10

Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

Psalm 56:3 

What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.

Isaiah 43:2

When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

And whether we realize it or not, fear is sin. God does not create fear, but instead, Satan does.

2 Timothy 1:7

 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

So if we are giving into our fears, we are doing exactly what Satan wants.

Just ask God to help you control your fears and give you peace about them. He is always there for you!

John 14:27b

Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

I was sent this by email, and I really like it! - Kimberly 

Jerry is the manager of a restaurant. He is always in a good mood.

When someone would ask him how he was doing, he would always reply, "If I were any better, I would be twins!"

Many of the waiters at his restaurant quit their jobs when he changed jobs, so they could follow him around from restaurant to restaurant.

Why? Because Jerry was a natural motivator. If an employee was having a bad day, Jerry was always there, telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation.

Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up to Jerry and said: "I don't get it! No one can be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it?"

Jerry replied, "Each morning I wake up and say tomyself, I have two choices today. I can choose to be in a good mood or I can choose to be in a bad mood. I always choose to be in a good mood. Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be victim or I can choose to learn from it. I always choose to learn from it.

Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their complaining or I can point out the positive side of life. I always choose the positive side of life."

"But it's not always that easy," I protested.

 "Yes it is," Jerry said. "Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk every situation is a choice.
You choose how you react to situations.
You choose how people will affect your mood.
You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood.
It's your choice how you live your life."

Several years later, I heard that Jerry accidentally did something you are never supposed to do in the restaurant business. He left the back door of his restaurant open.

 And then in the morning, he was robbed by three armed men. The robbers shot him.

 Luckily, Jerry was found quickly and rushed to the hospital. After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, Jerry was released from the hospital with fragments of the bullets still in his body.

I saw Jerry about six months after the accident. When I asked him how he was, he replied, "If I were any better, I'd be twins. Want to see my scars?"

I declined to see his wounds, but did ask him what had gone through his mind as the robbery took place.

"The first thing that went through my mind was that I should have locked the back door," Jerry replied. "Then, after they shot me, as I lay on the floor, I remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to live or could choose to die. I chose to live." 

 "Weren't you scared?" I asked.

 "The paramedics were great. They kept telling me I was going to be fine." Jerry continued. "But when they wheeled me into the Emergency Room and I saw the expression on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, I read 'He's a dead man.' I knew I needed to take action." 
 "What did you do?" I asked.

 "Well, there was a big nurse shouting questions at me," said Jerry. "She asked if I was allergic to anything.'Yes,' I replied.

 The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. I took a deep breath and yelled,

 'Bullets!'

 They laughed.

 I said, 'I am choosing to live. Please operate on me as if I am alive, not dead'".

Jerry lived thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude. I learned from him that every day you have the choice to either enjoy your life or to hate it.

 The only thing that is truly yours, that no one can control or take from you, is your attitude.

 So if you can take care of that, everything else in life becomes much easier. What will you choose?

 by: Kimberly

 One day, My mom was making a lemon cake for my dad. He loves them, and requested one for his birthday. 

She’d run out of lemon juice, so she used a real lemon. But when she picked up the lemon, it was partly shriveled up.

I said to my mom, “It looks like it’s rotten!”

She said, “No, it’s still good.” I have to admit, I doubted her from the way the lemon looked. But she cut it in half, and to my surprise, the lemon was perfect inside.

My mom said, “Looks can be deceiving.” And that got me thinking. As Christians, sometimes we can be like that lemon.

Except opposite. We try and make ourselves look good on the outside. But in reality, we’re not good on the inside.

Take for example how you act at church. You always act happy and pleasant, right? Well, then how do you act at home? Do you argue with your siblings? Talk back to your parents? Snap at someone when you’re stressed out?

Then why don’t you do those things at church, and when you’re out in public? It’s because you don’t want to look bad.

If you know you shouldn’t be acting badly at church, then you know you shouldn’t be acting that way at home, too.

Ephesians 4:31-32

Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:

And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.

by: Kimberly

How do you treat your friends? Like they’re the special person God made them? Or do you take them for granted, and treat them wrong?

Chances are, if you treat your friends well, then you probably have a lot of them! And teens should always have friends. Who else would you be able to talk with at Youth Group? Who else would you like to go to the beach with you during the summer? Who else would you stay on the phone with until your mom tells you it’s time to get off?

Let’s take a look at some things. Read the list below, and see which ones pertain to you.

• 1)      No matter what, I’m always honest with my friend. No matter what I think she’ll think of me if I tell her the truth, I tell her.

• 2)    If I disagree with a friend, I don’t get all heated up about the subject. I simply explain my point of view, and stay calm when she shares hers.

• 3)    I let my friend know that I like being friends with her. Maybe once in a while I send her a note or call her up on the phone just to see how she’s doing. I let her know that I care about her.

• 4)    If my friend has something to say, I listen to her. No matter what exciting thing I have to say, I don’t interrupt.

• 5)    If someone is being rude or being mean to my friend, I stand up for her. I don’t let others treat her badly.

• 6)    I never talk about my friend behind her back, or gossip about her. If I want to share something about her with someone else, I ask her first to see if it’s okay with her.

• 7)      I share my feelings with my friend. If she asks what’s wrong, I don’t just keep what I’m thinking all bottled up inside for fear that she’ll think badly of me.

• 8)      I never break a promise with my friends. If I say I’m going to do something, I try my best to stick to it.

• 9)    I never think I’m better than my friend. I know that God made us equal.

How did you do? Did you answer yes to most of the questions? Did you say no to a lot and felt bad about it? Or did you say no to a lot and don’t really care?

Let’s take a look at what God has to say.

Proverbs 17:17a A friend loveth at all times.

Proverbs 27:10a Thine own friend, and thy father's friend, forsake not;

Ephesians 4:32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.

Are you being kind towards your friends? Forgiving? Just think about it. If you’re not, don’t you think now is the time to start? You’ve heard it before:

If you want friends, you have to be a friend.

 by: Hillary Beth

Do you get dressed every day? I’m not talking about putting on clothes – I’m talking spiritually!

Helmet of Salvation

Protects: your thinking. Our thoughts are to be pure and for God.

Breastplate of Righteousness

Protects: Emotions

Out of your affections are the issues of life – don’t respond by just emotions, but by doing the right thing! God’s way is the best way!

Belt of Truth

Ties in the Truth and keeps it there!

Learn the Truth. Know (remember) the Truth. Sift all else through the Truth. Grow in the Truth. Share the Truth.

Shoes of Peace (sandals, whatever)

Carries the Gospel to the world! Be a peacemaker. Wherever God sends you, be a sharer of the peace of Christ, whether it’s in your home, down the street, or across the world. "Those who are faithful in little will be faithful in much." You can be at peace in the midst of conflict! Just be dressed in the right uniform!

Shield of Faith

No matter how intense the battle, no matter how many temptations are thrown at you, you can find protection behind the shield of faith, which sits on the Rock, Christ.

Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God

It’s offensive. It’s defensive. It can be used with believers and unbelievers alike. It convicts and sets free.

When we fail to resist temptation, we've laid down our armor.  Thought a bad thought?  Go and find where you laid your helmet, soldier!  Yelled at someone in anger?  Strap that breastplate back on!  Did you realize that there is no armor in provision for running away from these battles?  And they are all in your head, your heart, so all the harder to fight!

Take your stand. You have a position as a child of God. In Christ stand firm. Every day. Make an impact. Bear witness. Go to the battlefield. God does the fighting for us if we only stand. He shares through us, not for us.

by: Kimberly

It seems like no matter what you do or where you go, you hear or see something against God’s commands. You watch TV, and a commercial for an R rated movie comes onto the screen. You walk into the supermarket, and someone swears because they dropped bottle of soda on the ground. You go to the electronics section in a store to look at the computer games, and radios play music with bad lyrics.

It’s so easy to be tempted to watch that commercial, even if it’s just for a couple of seconds. Or, to stay in that section of the store longer to hear a bit more of that song. But, is that what God wants you to do? Let's see what the Bible has to say:

Romans 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Philippians 4:8  Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Remember that little saying that goes, “Garbage in, garbage out!”? It’s true. If you are listening or seeing wrong things, pretty soon you may slip up and say something bad, too.

Satan wants us to do or make the wrong decisions. He is the master of worldly things and temptations. We need to stay clear of his tricks, and remember what God wants you to do. Stay strong and resist the urge of temptation. When you do feel tempted, remember this verse:

1 Corinthians 10:13  There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

Above all, keep Scripture in your mind to protect you from wrong:

Ephesians 6:11  Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

Ephesians 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the  Spirit,which is the word of God.

by:  Kimberly 

I bet you’ve wondered before what you’re going to want to be, or do someday. You might have written an assignment on it for school, or just one day got an inspiration. But what about what God wants you to do? He has plans for your life.

Maybe you’re worried about His plans. Maybe you think that He might want you to do something that you don’t think you can do. But simply trust in Him. His plans for you will never be something that is impossible for you to do.

Be willing to look at new opportunities, because they might just be something that God wants you to do in your life. You never know. He may want you to become a Sunday school teacher, a missionary, or a social worker.

And lastly, be sure to pray about it. Ask God how He can use you to help others, or how you can serve Him. God gives each person certain spiritual gifts:

Romans 12:6 Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching.

Ask Him to show you how you can use your gifts for Him.

Take a look at these verses about trust:

Psalms 37:3 Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.

Psalms 40:4 Blessed is that man that maketh the Lord his trust, and respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.

Psalms 118: 8-9 It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.

Psalms 125: 1 They that trust in the Lord shall be as mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever. 

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Proverbs 28:26 He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered. 

Proverbs 29:25 The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe.

by: Hillary-Beth 

Do you ever feel like no one accepts you just the way you are?  Do you constantly struggle to love others just as Christ loves us?  Do you know that God accepts you totally and loves you completely?

God had created each of us to be unique. He designed us to be different and to serve special ways in specific places and certain times.  As Christians, we are all members of the body of Christ, and we function best when every part is working how and where it should.  Just because someone is not in the spotlight doesn't mean they're not as important. Just as no one sees the heart pumping blood, sometimes no one sees the compassion we show to others and the encouragment we give.  We all have different personalities and quirks.  Think about the people you love - they all do something that annoys you a little or is wild or silly, but you still love them!

 God is glorified when we accept one another.  But He cannot tolerate sin. We have to love one another despite the sin in hopes that they will change, but we cannot change other people - change only occurs when someone gives his life to God.  Jesus was around people who lived in sin in order to bring them to Him.  We ought to also, as long as the people aren't bringing us down with them and making us an ineffective witness.

Nothing we can do can make God accept us - He just does.  We cannot do enough good works.  Only faith will save. He accepts all who come to Him, as simply as that.  We must accept His gift of Jesus dying on the cross for our sins and rising again on the 3rd day to bring us eternal life.  Then we are accepted into His family and into His presence.

God did not create us to sin and be separated from Him, but we chose sin.  God gave us free choice.  He wants to set us free from sin so we can be who he made us to be.  If recurring sin of any kind is weighing you down, you cannot be fulfilling your potential in life.  Only when you let Him set you free will you be able to be successful; then we are in His Will, doing what He purposed us to do.

Where'd that come from?

• Matthew 9:11-12
• Chronicles 34:4
• Colossians 2:6
• Romans 3:27
• Romans 15:7
• Romans 8:39
• Romans 3:23

by: Kimberly 

Maybe when you read the title of this article, you thought, “Volunteering just isn’t my thing”. Or you might think, “Why should I? I’ve got better things to do!”

The Bible tells us to be kind to each other, and helping one another is a part of being kind! It’s impossible to be absolutely helpful all the time, but you can at least take a few minutes each day to give someone a hand!

Here’s a whole list for you to choose from! 

• Offer to help out some way in your church. See if they need any extra people to help out in the nursery, Help clean up after the service is over, or just ask someone in charge if there’s anything you can do to help!
   
• Do some weeding for your mom without being asked. 
  
• Volunteer to help take care of a neighbor’s pet for free while they’re away.
  
• Offer to make a sibling’s bed up for them in the morning.
  
• Prepare a meal for your family to give your mom a break.
  
• At a friend’s birthday party, ask the person who’s in charge if they need you to take pictures or serve food for them.
  
•  Offer to baby-sit a younger sibling for free if you’re parents need to go somewhere.
  
• If your family’s thinking of having a yard sale, ask your parents if you can donate part of the money earned to charity.
  
• Send a “thinking of you” E-card to a friend you haven’t seen in a while.
  
• Ask your parents if you can volunteer at a nursing home once a week to help out with food, helping the patients to get around in their wheelchairs, or anything else that might be needed to be done.

Now try and think of a few on your own, and write them down.

And even if you don't enjoy volunteering, remember that your doing it for

God. That's what really counts.