YouTube video I came across... worth the watch!

I came across this YouTube video, a Q&A on dating and relationships, done by a young newly married couple who love the Lord. There are so many perfectly made points. Definitely worth a watch! Some of these questions aren't even one's I'd ever thought of, and some of them are questions that I ask myself often..

In the video Jeff uses the metaphor of a triangle, it reminded me of another metaphor I've heard like that. Here it is, picture it with me.

There are two baseball players in the field. The ball is hit. Both baseball players see the ball and start running. Their mind is on the ball. Their eyes are focused on the ball and nothing else. They aren't looking around, they're only looking at the ball. All of a sudden "SMACK!" the guys hit each other... 

In the same way, if we focus on God, not letting anything draw us away from Him, He will bring us to the right person. We have to first focus on God before we can focus on the guys around us(speaking from a girl's point of view.) 

Here is the link to the video, really worth the watch! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ww0ho3VUmM 

My Testimony :)

Hello Everyone!

    Wow, I can't believe we haven't posted since June! Time's just flying. My sister's getting married in a couple of weeks so I've been busy with all that joyous wedding stuff! I also just haven't really had anything to share lately. Until now! There's this song that I hear on the radio pretty often, it's called "All This Time" by Britt Nicole. In the first part of the song she says :

"I remember the moment, I remember the pain. I was only a girl, but I grew up that day. Tears were falling, I know you saw me hiding there in my bedroom, so alone. I was doing my best, trying to be strong. No one to turn to, that's when I met you." I love this song, and the more I hear it the more it reminds me of how I really came to know God. So I thought I would share my testimony with you guys! That first part of the song, as cliche as it might sound, perfectly describes the moment I truly discovered the Lord.

   I grew up going to church and learning about Jesus, but I never fully understood it. The best way to describe how my relationship was with the Lord at the time would be to say that I had my "fire insurance." You may have heard this term before, but if you haven't, what it means is that I believed in God and I had asked Him to forgive me of my sins, and I knew I would be saved from going to Hell. But it was just a surface relationship, I didn't really get it yet. So when I was about fourteen I had been going through some difficult stuff, and the best way I knew how to deal with it was to shut down. Slowly I began to shut out my friends and my family, I didn't want to do anything or see anyone. I just wanted to sit in my room alone and wallow in my own self pity. I didn't understand life, I didn't want to live it anymore. What was the point? All life gives us is a bunch of pain and suffering, and then we die anyway. I had been having suicidal thoughts for a while, but I couldn't bring myself to actually do anything. So I prayed to God to take me away, I just wanted to be with Him, life on earth was pointless. Then one day when I was about sixteen my Dad had enough, so he started yelling at me about how I need to snap out of it and change my attitude. Although this only sent me to my room hating life even more, this time I decided to grab my Bible. I just sat on my bed for a while, looking at it and asking God to guide me to the right page. When I opened my Bible it was the book of Philippians, and the first verse I saw was Philippians 1:21, "For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." So I thought about it for a while. I understood the second part, it's what I'd been wanting for the past couple years. But the first part is what I needed to focus on. "To live is Christ." Then it came to me, like God was speaking to me Himself (which He was.) My whole purpose as a Christian while on this earth is to share the Lord with others. Christ died to save us, and when we accept Him as our savior His Spirit lives in us. Therefore, to live is Christ. At that moment all my confusion, my fear, and especially my anger was gone. God had revealed His purpose for my life to me, and for the first time I truly understood what being a Christian was all about. 

   So now here we are, two years later, I've finished high school and have now applied to YWAM to attend DTS next spring! Looking back now I feel so ashamed of the way I had been acting, but I also know that God used that time in my life to reveal Himself to me, and I couldn't be more grateful. Near the end of the song Britt says "I hear these people asking me, how do I know what I believe? Well I'm not the same me, and that's all the proof I need. I felt your love, I felt your grace, You stole my heart that day." I think that's the best proof of Christ we could ever share. People are always looking for "facts" because they need proof before they believe anything. But we have proof - our personal experience of God's love and grace towards us. Whether they believe it or not is up to them, but we're supposed to share it anyway. 

  I haven't really shared this much before, but I hope it's helpful. If any of you are going through a hard time and just don't see the point in going on anymore, don't let Satan trick you into thinking life is pointless. We're supposed to live our lives to honor the Lord and bring others to Him, but that's exactly what the enemy is trying to prevent. He's going to lose in the end, don't let him get the best of you. Stay strong in the Lord. :)

God's Timing

Hey Guys! This conversation I once had crossed my mind a couple weeks ago, and I thought I would share it with you. I hope this is helpful to you in some way or another! :)

One day I was having a conversation with a couple of my friends (maybe more of a debate), and the topic was about sex. (Yes, sorry for the uncomfortable topic..) Now don't worry, this isn't a conversation about anything weird, or even specific. Just the topic in general. So the conversation took a turn to whether or not we were waiting for marriage, and when I said that I was going to, one of my friends asked why. So I talked about how it's what God told us to do, and about my personal reasons for doing it, and when I was done my friend started doing what anyone does when you talk about God or the Bible - start bringing up "the facts." They started telling me that the reason God told us to wait was because back then girls got married so much younger than they do these days so it was ok, but if a woman waits too long now it could lead to health problems and whatnot. 

The thought I had as my friend was saying all this was "do you really think God didn't know what marriage would be like today?" God knows everything, He can see fifty years into our futures as if it is already happening to us today! He already knew that things would be done differently today than they were done when He wrote the Bible. God's Word is infinite; just because the times change doesn't mean we don't have to listen to the Bible anymore. God wrote it for a reason, and that was so we would always have a way to learn about Him and follow His plans for us. 

God's Word doesn't have an expiration date. So if anyone tries to tell you about how things are "different now," don't let them shake you. God already knew they would be, just trust Him and keep following His plan.

Matthew Parker's Powerful Song About Abortion

Out of school for the summer and bored out of my mind.. All I've done the past 3 weeks is sit around in my pjs watching Netflix, with the semi occasional going to work and making money, of course! But why didn't I think of this sooner? I should write on the Blog more often now that I have time! So here goes, folks!

If you haven't noticed, Kaitlyn and I are pretty big on pro-life stuff. A friend of mine knew that and he shared this link with me, https://soundcloud.com/eyesontheking/this-is-madness-the-american-holocaust. It's a song that Matthew Parker wrote about abortion. Though I haven't been listening to very much rap lately this really grabbed my attention because of it's powerful lyrics. This guy has the right idea, there's a line in the song that says "We call it a decision, a choice but it's a life! Little girl, little boy but now they are destroyed. Who will speak for those without a voice?" Like I said previously, powerful lyrics!

Just thought I would share that song with ya'll. The download is totally free! Whoop whoop! Yay for free music!

Pro Life

      One of my friends posted the link to this website on Facebook, and I thought I would share it with you guys! I love what they had to say about abortion. I hope you guys will too! 

http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/the-truth-about-abortion-will-set-you-free

God Help Our Country..

      While I was on Facebook, I came across a post one of my friends had shared. It was a news article talking about what may start being done to people in the military who share their religious views. I will add the link to this article at the bottom of this post.

      In this article, it's said that "Christians-- including chaplains--sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ in the military are guilty of 'treason'." They go on to say how it is considered "spiritual rape" and that Christians in the military who share their faith are "enemies of the Constitution." This is ridiculous! "Spiritual rape?" Seriously?! This is upsetting on so many levels. It literally makes my stomach turn the more I think about it. What happened to freedom of speech? What ever happened to the separation of church and state? The idea that the church should be free from government control, not that religion and morality should be separate from public life; although many people now-a-days get it confused. And I may not be an expert or anything, but "enemies of the Constitution?" I'm pretty positive that our Founding Fathers, the men who WROTE that Constitution, had talked about God just a few times themselves... 
    Another thing - remember how it said it includes chaplains? Well, these are ordained military officers, whose very job is to teach their faith and help others spiritually who come to them for "counsel, instruction, or comfort." Sharing the gospel is their military duty! The article states how it has been this way since the U.S. military was founded under George Washington! Why are we going to punish these people for doing their job?? My final point (for now, anyways.) is that this is scary. When a man/woman can't even serve his/her own country and express their ideas of faith --any display of Christianity, even just praying in front of others-- without being thrown into jail or being "dishonorably discharged" from the military, it's pretty sad. I didn't realize that honoring the God who created the very earth and country these men and women are fighting for would be considered as bad as going AWAL. I honestly wonder what has happened to our freedom. Our country needs so much prayer...

    I hope you all will join me in praying for this issue, and many others involving our country. Right now it's the military being persecuted, tomorrow it could be the rest of us. Scary thought, I know; but it honestly would not be surprising at this point. Reminds me of the story of Daniel. No matter what may come, I'd rather be thrown into a lion's den than stop praising my God. 

   Here's that article!  http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2013/05/01/Breaking-Pentagon-Confirms-Will-Court-Martial-Soldiers-Who-Share-Christian-Faith

You can also find an interview on the Fox News, Fox & Friends Website. It's a great video, I encourage you all to check it out! http://www.foxnews.com/on-air/fox-friends/index.html#http://video.foxnews.com/v/2342660060001/will-us-military-court-martial-christians/?playlist_id=86912

Torie Time!!

Hey Guys!!

      So, I just got back a few days ago from visiting Torie! And as if that's not cool enough in itself, I got to be there for her birthday too! It was such a blast, I'm so glad I got to go! 


     Anyway, we have some more of those random videos for you guys, so here ya go! 

     These are from Torie's last day of school! We made a tire swing with her friend Max, and we got a little distracted when it came time to take it down...haha. :) 

We have some more stuff coming later!

Goodbye Starbucks...

Alright everyone, this is gonna be a bit of a long post, so bear with me please! :) Here we go...  

      Apparently, Starbucks wants to "embrace diversities of all kinds." Just not the kind of diversity that believes marriage should be between a man and a woman. When confronted about the drop in stocks, CEO Howard Schultz responded that, if the man didn't like the results, he could sell his stocks and invest in another business.

     I wonder what would happen to Starbucks if all of their Christian/Conservative costumers stopped buying from them? I know personally several Christians who work there, and many more who enjoy their coffee. I even used to have Bible studies at Starbucks! I wonder how many employees they would lose?..

Now a bit deeper into the homosexuality part...

       The thing that bothers me the most is that so many people think that just because we don't agree with homosexuality, we're "homophobic." I'm pretty sure that's not even a real fear. I'm not afraid of homosexuals, or paranoid, or disgusted. I'm not saying there aren't people who are, but just because I'm a Christian doesn't mean I hate gay people. I love them. I just don't love the fact that they're living in sin. Just the way God loves them, not the way they're living. (Leviticus 18:22) People think we're hypocrites because we talk about loving everyone, and then tell homosexuals that what they do is wrong. But the real hypocrites are those who go to church, know what the Bible says about homosexuality, and then go out and tell everyone that it's ok and God loves them no matter what they do. Those are the people who don't really care, because they're lying to you. (Romans 1:32) Just because we try to talk to people about it, and share that it's not the right thing to be doing, doesn't mean we hate them or that we're afraid of them. It shows that we love them and that we want them to see the truth. (Matthew 19:4-6)

    We all live in sin, but we can't just say "oh, God loves me anyways, so I can keep doing this and that." That's not the way it works. We need to repent, ask forgiveness, and ask for His help to change and get through the sin we're struggling with. Telling others that they can keep living in their sin isn't showing Christ's love, it's pacifying them and tickling their ears with what they want to hear. 

And, back to Starbucks..

Just a few of my thoughts on the matter. Below is a link to the article that talks about Starbucks and their CEO incase you want to check it out! I think we should spread the word to our friends who haven't heard about this yet. I understand that we can't boycott every company that agrees with homosexuality, but I think this is one that really needs to be heard about. You know, since it's not being blasted all over the media like Chick-Fil-A was. *exasperated tone* But that's an entire new rant in itself.. ;P

http://www.examiner.com/article/starbucks-ceo-no-tolerance-for-traditional-marriage-supporters

Quotes and Thoughts

Here's a quote from the first week of Bible study and some thoughts to follow.

Three types of Christians:

The caster oil type: "It's bitter, but it's good for what ails you."
The shredded wheat type: "It's dry, but nourishing."
The strawberries and cream type: "They can't get enough of it!"

Now, I'll be honest.. When I first read this I was pretty convicted! Because (again, being honest) I'm not in the Word all the time, I haven't gotten to the place where I find great joy in reading my Bible.. It really gave me something to think about. Thinking about where I am, and where I want to be and knowing those places aren't the same. What kind of Christian are you? What kind of Christian do you want to be?

The study also said this,

We should grab for the Word like a baby grabs for a bottle. We need to crave the Word of God. We develop that kind of taste for the Bible by spending time in it.

That is such a wonderful analogy taken straight out of the Bible(found in 1 Peter 2:2)!
Now not only have I figured out that I'm not the type of Christian I want to be, but I also know how to fix it! And you do too. Take these things into consideration and really think for yourself about where you are and want to be. If you're not where you want to be, strive to get there.

- Quotes from Howard Hendricks. -

Knowing what the Bible really says

After realizing we needed something deeper and more substantial than what we were getting at our youth group (which is based more for newer Christians) a friend and I started a Bible study. We found someone to lead it and it was a go! We invited a few select friends who we knew would really get a lot out of it but we didn't open it up to everyone because we feared it would become a place to hangout rather than a time to study the Word of God. We all wanted to be able to read the Bible and actually understand it and also wanted to grow our relationships with God. So we started this Bible study; it's been 3 weeks now and it's going GREAT!
Being able to discover what the Bible says for myself and being able to think for myself about things is so fascinating! Being able to feed myself spiritually rather than just being fed on Sundays. Before I was assuming what I'm taught in church is truth but now being able to go look in the Word  of God and see for myself, making sure what the Preacher/Pastor is teaching is truth and biblically based. Just like the Bible says in Acts 17:11  "And the people of Berea were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, and they listened eagerly to Paul's message. They searched the Scriptures day after day to see if Paul and Silas were teaching truth." So great to see what the Bible says in comparison to what I hear from others. Believing what I believe because I know it's in the Bible is much more reassuring than believing what I believe because I heard my pastor or youth pastor say it.
Are you believing things because that's what you were taught by leaders in your church? Or are you believing them because you know that's what the Bible says?

Videos!

Hey ya'll! Here are some of those random videos Kaitlyn mentioned!  Kaitlyn and I went to the park while I was there.. Superman on the swings. She's pro and I'm a major armature at it! Incredibly fun though, if you haven't tried this, do it!

Life Update :)

    Hey guys!  So, Torie went home a few days ago, and now life is kinda back to it's same old routine of school and work...  But, we have some videos for you guys from while she was here! If we can get them to upload, that is! (This is where the "random, crazy posts" part comes in..) So if we can get it to work for us, we hope you enjoy our weird, randomness! ;) 

Oh! And we're sorry that we haven't posted in the past couple of days! We've been getting back into the swing of things (AKA, our same old, boring routines..) But we're back on track now! :) 

                             GOODNIGHT WORLD!

Just some thoughts..

Something I think would be amazing to do, is to regularly go to an orphanage and spend time with the children. I always wonder what it's like for the kids who don't get adopted, and have to be out on their own when they turn eighteen. I think it would be great to be someone those kids could go to, and talk with. I would love to go teach them about Jesus, and be that person in their lives. Even for the children who do get adopted, it would be a great role to play in their lives, and something they could look back on. It just seems like such a great way to show kids the love of Christ. To show them that they're not forgotten or unwanted, and that people do love and care about them. Especially God. Just some thoughts of mine... :)

Adoption vs. Abortion

Adoption vs. Abortion

When faced with the obstacle of becoming pregnant with an unwanted child, many women face a choice. This choice is whether they should choose putting their child up for adoption, or get an abortion. If the woman were to choose adoption, she would be giving her child the opportunity to find a loving home, with people who either can't have children of their own, or just wish to extend their family and help children who do not yet have one. If the woman chooses adoption, she gives her child a chance. 

   Many, though, choose the alternative. Believing that no one would want a child conceived through rape, or that orphanages are too crowded and bring more harm than good, they decide to just abort the child. A woman may believe that abortion is a process, just a "quick fix" to their problem; however, abortion harms not only the baby, but also the mother. When a woman chooses abortion, she not only takes away the child God gave her - she also takes away the chance at life that God gave that child. 
  Adoption should be the solution to unintended or unwanted pregnancies; but sadly, abortion seems to be chosen more often than adoption. 

The Truth About Abortion

Here's something I wrote about a year ago, and felt like adding to the blog. :)


This post is not meant to convict those who have had an abortion. It is only meant to show others the truth about abortion.




Abortion.
A word we are very familiar with.
A word that people use so carelessly, you wouldn’t realize how devastating its action really is.
An action many people support without fully understanding what it means.
I want to help you understand what it means.

Think about what you know of this word - Abortion. To most, it means almost nothing. It means simply removing a clump of cells that may one day become an inconvenience. It means getting rid of a reminder of a traumatic experience. It means controlling possible overpopulation.

But to me, it means murder. Murder of an innocent baby, who never intended to become your inconvenience, but your loveable child. It means killing a defenseless child, that is as much as an innocent victim of that traumatic experience as you are. It means slaughtering millions of babies, God’s gifts, for no better reason than our own selfishness.

Those who support abortion, or are “pro-choice,” pose the argument that the mother should be able to do what they want with their body. But they aren’t dealing with their own body, they are dealing with a child’s. Their child’s. The baby’s blood is separate from the mother’s, making the child a separate life. “The life of the flesh is in the blood…” Leviticus 17:11

Another argument is that if a woman has been raped, surely she can abort the child. But that child is just as much a victim as she is. God has a plan for that child. Murdering that baby is not your right. That baby is God’s gift- not your curse. Sadly, some never get to realize it.


Looking at sonograms and pictures in my school textbooks, it amazes me how so many people can say that a fetus is not a child. That it is only cells. When it has a heartbeat at only eighteen days of conception. All body systems are present by eight weeks, and are fully functioning by eleven weeks. The brain is present, already sending impulses at six weeks and is fully formed by twelve weeks. While it takes four to six weeks, if not longer, to get a pregnancy test. The Latin word “fetus” even means “small baby" or "unborn baby." It is alive from the point of conception. “And the children struggled within her..” Genesis 25:22, “He took his brother by the heel in the womb..” Hosea 12:3, “the baby leaped in her womb..” Luke 1:41

But many of us don’t believe it.
Some aren’t even aware.
We’ve been misinformed. Lied to.

We’ve also been misinformed of the physical and emotional pain it causes the mother, the child, and sometimes the father. When a woman goes in for an abortion, she most likely isn’t aware that she will see her child delivered, scorched and burned, due to the saline solution that has been injected into his body. This is known as the saline method. These women probably aren’t aware that their children are being vacuumed out of their womb, body part by body part – the suction method. That their fragile flesh is being torn to pieces, as if thrown into a blender, inside of her own body. The dilation and evacuation method. If they are aware, one thing they don’t expect is the immense guilt they feel after the process. The years of “what ifs,” wondering how life could have been if they decided against abortion. Missing their baby. The one they got rid of to better their own lives, while in turn, only made it worse. While they watched their newborn laid aside on a counter, to sit helplessly, ignored by doctors and nurses. Just left there to die - the hysterotomy. Imagine the emotional damage done to that mother.

I want to inform you. Abortion is murder. That is an unborn child, not a bunch of cells. That is a mother, who will regret her decision. Abortion is something we’ve become desensitized to. We can’t be desensitized. We can’t let this become a meaningless topic. This is a serious issue. An issue that takes millions of innocent lives.

Don’t ignore the issue.
Abortion.

“For You created my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, Your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be.” Psalm 139:13-16

Christian or not, If you are reading this and you have already had an abortion, I want you to know that this is NOT meant to judge you or make you feel like a horrible person. You can’t undo what has already been done, and we don’t hate you for doing it. As I said at the very beginning, this is only meant to inform others, and to keep them from going through what you have gone through. I want you to know, if you don’t already, that God loves you, and will forgive you if you just go to Him and ask for forgiveness. “Return to the Lord your God. Your sins have been your downfall! Take words with you and return to the Lord. Say to Him: ‘forgive all our sins and receive us graciously, that we may offer the fruit of our lips.’ I will heal their waywardness and love them freely, for My anger has turned away from them.” Hosea 14:1-2, 4
Christ is the only way to once again have peace. He’s the only one who can help you overcome. He still loves you, and so do we.

God's love for us..

Here's a cool thought that came to mind last week :)

God wants us to love Him the way we want our male-interest (our word for crush or guy you like) to love us. As they walk by we hope they take notice of us or hope they stop to talk to us. We want them to make the first move, talk to us, get to know us and lastly we want them to love us. As girls we eventually give up on our male-interest and move on...
In the same way God wants our love. He sees us every day walk right by without talking to Him or even noticing He's there. He waits for us to talk to Him. He waits for us to know Him. He waits for us to love Him back. 
Thing is, God's love is different; He waits forever. He doesn't give up and stop loving us, move on to someone new.. He loves us specifically. He loves us for eternity!

Welcome!

     Hi! Well, the title just about says it all -- We are two best friends who created a blog! Although the main reason we wanted to make a blog was so we could share our views on serious topics of today's society, don't be surprised if you see some random, crazy posts! We are two best friends, after all. Thank you for taking the time to check us out! We hope you enjoy our blog!

   Oh! And we also ask that if you have a different view on these topics, and feel the need to express your opinions, please do it in a kind manner! We're not here to pick fights, so we don't want aggressive comments. Thank you! :D

                               ~Torie and Kaitlyn