Dec 3-18
Happy Holidays vs Merry Christmas
Here's a thought about the Happy Holidays offense. Recently I heard an ad on the radio saying we will never say happy holidays, it's basically Merry Christmas or nothing. A year ago I would have been 200% in agreement. Now, I don't really care. See, if the season really is about happiness and joy, then what does it matter how it is said? Christmas is nothing but a commercial ad selling useless stuff that will all eventually fade away anyways. Yeah, yeah, I know, "Jesus is the reason for the season", and all that jazz, but is he really? Or is that just an excuse we use to go crazy shopping and planning and doing basically the same as the rest of the world anyways but only better because we have it more right than them? Is it really about Jesus? Or are you just saying that to appear more religious and righteous? Is it a good way to justify ourselves over others and to hang decorations because our santas sit better next to a nativity scene? Think about it.
Why so offended at Happy Holidays? If it makes someone happy, and respects their difference of belief or way of life, is it really that bad to just say that instead of Merry Christmas? Does the season change by what you say? NO! If you really wanted them to have a "merry Christmas", would you not also want them to have a "happy Holidays"? Noone is taking away your right to say what you want to say, or to believe what you want to believe, or to celebrate how you want to celebrate. But it shows respect to not bulldoze your way through this time of year by insisting that everyone agree to your way of thinking, because let's face it, that's just not going to happen. A friend recently posted a quote that talks about the fact that no-one changes due to outside pressures, whether it be begging, shaming, reasoning, emotion, tough love, etc. The only thing that allows people to change is their CHOICE to change. They need to recognize their need for change and they need to decide for themselves to change, it cannot be forced. Why do we think this is any different? In the grand scheme of things, who has ever been convinced of the gospel of Jesus by whether someone says "Merry Christmas" over Happy Holidays? Really? THIS pettiness is why Christians have a bad reputation for being so hypocritical. No wonder no-one takes us seriously, even I as a christian don't take it seriously.
We are called to reflect Jesus, to preach His good news. Nowhere do I see it appointed to us to be throwing stones. Is a tree or a cross displayed going to change that, really? Is a phrase or a day off going to change it? Or having christmas music blaring in the mall or even a church service? It is God that draws people to Himself by His Spirit, not us dragging people by our words and symbols and egos. I have many non christian friends and family. I've yet to hear anyone complain that Merry Christmas actually offends them, to be honest. I think it's all been blown way out of proportion actually. But if any one of them were to come to me and say it made them uncomfortable, I would respect that, and consider it an opening for discussion and an opportunity to learn and share rather than to point fingers and judge. I will gladly say Happy Holidays because If Jesus can make a Christmas Merry, He can sure make a holiday Happy. The point is, Jesus.
And That is my rant for the week lol.
12.03.2018
5.28.2018
Baptism for Salvation
May 28-2018
If baptism is a requirement for salvation it undermines the entire life and death of Jesus and denies the whole of God's sovereignty. Did Jesus die and raise from death so that we could be saved and forgiven of our sins, or did He die so that we could secure our own salvation by the fleshly act of jumping into a bucket of water to save our souls? Is Christ alone enough? Or is God a liar and his love and salvation is conditional with hidden innuendos that he doesn't mention in scripture? Does He not make His word easy enough to comprehend? I mean, A CHILD can understand it, why can't man stop making it so complicated and just accept His truth for what it is?
The scriptures that say just believe, are they wrong too then? Did God LIE in His Holy Word? Are all the souls that believed and died before being baptised go straight to hell? Or is God holding to a double standard and changing the rules for some and not for others?
Jesus was baptised BEFORE he died. As a show of faith as an example. Was he needing to do that before he died then because his death and resurrection wouldn't be enough? Careful here, your bordering on heresy.
There is no in-between. There is no grey area. it's a simple yes or no.
Either Jesus saves, or Jesus was not enough because we need baptism to save us. NO In Between.
BOOM I just broke it down for you. Mic Drop. I'm out.
If baptism is a requirement for salvation it undermines the entire life and death of Jesus and denies the whole of God's sovereignty. Did Jesus die and raise from death so that we could be saved and forgiven of our sins, or did He die so that we could secure our own salvation by the fleshly act of jumping into a bucket of water to save our souls? Is Christ alone enough? Or is God a liar and his love and salvation is conditional with hidden innuendos that he doesn't mention in scripture? Does He not make His word easy enough to comprehend? I mean, A CHILD can understand it, why can't man stop making it so complicated and just accept His truth for what it is?
The scriptures that say just believe, are they wrong too then? Did God LIE in His Holy Word? Are all the souls that believed and died before being baptised go straight to hell? Or is God holding to a double standard and changing the rules for some and not for others?
Jesus was baptised BEFORE he died. As a show of faith as an example. Was he needing to do that before he died then because his death and resurrection wouldn't be enough? Careful here, your bordering on heresy.
There is no in-between. There is no grey area. it's a simple yes or no.
Either Jesus saves, or Jesus was not enough because we need baptism to save us. NO In Between.
BOOM I just broke it down for you. Mic Drop. I'm out.
2.22.2018
Let's Talk Depression Pt 1
Let's talk depression.
Feb 22-2018
This might sound extremely choppy and there might be a lot of rabbit trails that I go down, but it makes sense in my head as I type it lol.
Just going to touch on one small effect of this depression for today because it's been on my mind. I saw an article tonight that talked about a lady who had been sick and she mentioned she hadn't showered for nearly a week. The comments on the thread following were well, as usual, less than considerate or understanding. Some say they shower 1 to 2 times a day, others say how disgusting that is.
A week can be nothing to go without a shower or bath when in the middle of a depressive episode. When you are busy hating yourself, self care is the last thing on your list of to-do's, if you even have a list to begin with. If you're dealing with this long term, you learn ways to work around it. Some people are very good at covering it up. Not showering is just one small side effect of depression. I'm sure you've all read the articles posted, all the "Twelve ways Depression affects daily life" and such. Most people who read them are ones suffering already that can identify with most or all of the items and give a big YES to it. Let's make it personal, and I will be honest and go slightly deeper. It's not just not having a shower for a few days. It's being paralyzed, immobile. Sometimes for hours, sometimes for days or weeks. In my experience, I can find myself, and I've been more aware of it lately, getting lost for long lengths of time, Literally frozen and unable to move. My mind just blanks out and my body shuts down and just won't let me. I'll lay in my bed thinking "it's 7:30 am, why am I up so early?", then I will pick up my cell phone, open face-book and I blink and it's 10 am. Then I will tell myself "I have 2 hours to have a shower and get ready before I have to leave the house.". Next thing you know it's 11:55 and I have 5 minutes to get dressed and out the door. So much for a shower. Do I do anything in all that time? Not really. I can stare at my phone or at a tv and anything I see or hear goes in one thing and out the other, I'm not really there at all. I just can't bring myself to get off my ass and do what I KNOW needs done. Some would just scoff and say that I'm just being lazy. But if you've been there you know what I mean. You make a list of 20 things that need done during the week (laundry, shopping, paying bills, cleaning house, fixing the door handle on the car, etc) and you are lucky if even one gets done. If you manage to get enough energy to do 2 or three things in one day, it's a miracle. Everything just seems like it takes sooooooo much effort and energy that you don't have. I lose track of time very easily. I make lists lately over and over and over again that just don't get done. I could have a task that needs done and three days can go by and I will forget all about it until it's something I need and I'm wondering why on earth I don't have it and I tell myself "oh right, I was supposed to do that like last week".
If you're still with me and following me say amen lol.
What I do now instead of beat myself up over it, is I learn to celebrate small accomplishments. I don't need a big party but if I can do a couple things on my list of 50 I won't feel bad. I can't, because the second I do my mind wanders and I'm lost again. I get overwhelmed easily with things not done, things I'm missing, everything negative, and I start to shut down again. And that's just a vicious cycle. Some days I have energy to do more and on those days I do my best to get as much done as possible, knowing that the next day could be a nothing day with no energy or motivation. It's literally having to take one day at a time, or one hour at a time. Schedules are important, structure is important. But with an illness, learning to be flexible can mean the world when it comes to coping daily.
Don't give up. All I know is that tomorrow might be a better (more productive) day.
Michelle
Feb 22-2018
This might sound extremely choppy and there might be a lot of rabbit trails that I go down, but it makes sense in my head as I type it lol.
Just going to touch on one small effect of this depression for today because it's been on my mind. I saw an article tonight that talked about a lady who had been sick and she mentioned she hadn't showered for nearly a week. The comments on the thread following were well, as usual, less than considerate or understanding. Some say they shower 1 to 2 times a day, others say how disgusting that is.
A week can be nothing to go without a shower or bath when in the middle of a depressive episode. When you are busy hating yourself, self care is the last thing on your list of to-do's, if you even have a list to begin with. If you're dealing with this long term, you learn ways to work around it. Some people are very good at covering it up. Not showering is just one small side effect of depression. I'm sure you've all read the articles posted, all the "Twelve ways Depression affects daily life" and such. Most people who read them are ones suffering already that can identify with most or all of the items and give a big YES to it. Let's make it personal, and I will be honest and go slightly deeper. It's not just not having a shower for a few days. It's being paralyzed, immobile. Sometimes for hours, sometimes for days or weeks. In my experience, I can find myself, and I've been more aware of it lately, getting lost for long lengths of time, Literally frozen and unable to move. My mind just blanks out and my body shuts down and just won't let me. I'll lay in my bed thinking "it's 7:30 am, why am I up so early?", then I will pick up my cell phone, open face-book and I blink and it's 10 am. Then I will tell myself "I have 2 hours to have a shower and get ready before I have to leave the house.". Next thing you know it's 11:55 and I have 5 minutes to get dressed and out the door. So much for a shower. Do I do anything in all that time? Not really. I can stare at my phone or at a tv and anything I see or hear goes in one thing and out the other, I'm not really there at all. I just can't bring myself to get off my ass and do what I KNOW needs done. Some would just scoff and say that I'm just being lazy. But if you've been there you know what I mean. You make a list of 20 things that need done during the week (laundry, shopping, paying bills, cleaning house, fixing the door handle on the car, etc) and you are lucky if even one gets done. If you manage to get enough energy to do 2 or three things in one day, it's a miracle. Everything just seems like it takes sooooooo much effort and energy that you don't have. I lose track of time very easily. I make lists lately over and over and over again that just don't get done. I could have a task that needs done and three days can go by and I will forget all about it until it's something I need and I'm wondering why on earth I don't have it and I tell myself "oh right, I was supposed to do that like last week".
If you're still with me and following me say amen lol.
What I do now instead of beat myself up over it, is I learn to celebrate small accomplishments. I don't need a big party but if I can do a couple things on my list of 50 I won't feel bad. I can't, because the second I do my mind wanders and I'm lost again. I get overwhelmed easily with things not done, things I'm missing, everything negative, and I start to shut down again. And that's just a vicious cycle. Some days I have energy to do more and on those days I do my best to get as much done as possible, knowing that the next day could be a nothing day with no energy or motivation. It's literally having to take one day at a time, or one hour at a time. Schedules are important, structure is important. But with an illness, learning to be flexible can mean the world when it comes to coping daily.
Don't give up. All I know is that tomorrow might be a better (more productive) day.
Michelle
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