April 14th-16th at Morehouse College in Atlanta, GA
For more information, go to www.theconvergenceconference.com
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
The Convergence Conference Promo Video
April 14th-16th at Morehouse College in Atlanta, GA
For more information, go to www.theconvergenceconference.com
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Then...and WOW! My weight-loss journey
And the journey continues...
Here at The Well we have an awesome Health and Fitness program:
"Wellian students have entered the school with various goals including eating healthier, losing weight or gaining weight. At The Well, students are encouraged and expected to eat healthy and stay physically fit. Each student completes a thirty-minute exercise activity, a minimum of three days a week. The Well also has an established Run Club… in which we take weekend runs on the campus of Georgia Tech." (runtothewell.com)
Before coming to The Well, I had been trying to lose weight on and off; I would go really strong for a few months and then fall over and give up. I also had a lot of bad habits in college that were really destructive to my body.
It has been really hard for me to lose weight in the past because I was trying to lose weight for myself; my motivation was off. I wanted to lose weight so I could look good and feel better about myself. I’ve had a lot of self-confidence issues that I thought would just go away when I finally lost the extra pounds. But, it never happened.
At The Well, God has been showing me the importance of taking care of my body for Him.
It is important to take care of my body because:
It shows good discipline (1 Corinthians 9:27)
I will have more energy for ministry work and for the mission field
I will have more energy for my family
It shows that I can be a good steward of the things that God has given me, which include my health
It glorifies God
These days I am feeling great and looking good! Since taking the focus off of myself and focusing on God (Matthew 6:33), the weight has been coming off!
Its funny, because now that my focus has shifted, the weight loss hasn't become as important to me. And, I find myself purposly not trying to get caught up in it. But, God is showing me that I need to focus on it and talk about it more because it is a part of my testimony and I can use it to glorify Him.
Plus it's not about me. Psalm 67:1-3 says
God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah. That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations. Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee.
God loves to bless us, but it's not just for us. He blesses us so that we can inturn tell others about the goddness of God. So, I'm determined now to give God the glory and credit for each pound because I can say beyond a shadow of a doubt that its not me.
So, I'm guessing now you want to see some proof? Well, I don't have any official numbers for you yet, but here is a before-and-after photo:
Here at The Well we have an awesome Health and Fitness program:
"Wellian students have entered the school with various goals including eating healthier, losing weight or gaining weight. At The Well, students are encouraged and expected to eat healthy and stay physically fit. Each student completes a thirty-minute exercise activity, a minimum of three days a week. The Well also has an established Run Club… in which we take weekend runs on the campus of Georgia Tech." (runtothewell.com)
Before coming to The Well, I had been trying to lose weight on and off; I would go really strong for a few months and then fall over and give up. I also had a lot of bad habits in college that were really destructive to my body.
It has been really hard for me to lose weight in the past because I was trying to lose weight for myself; my motivation was off. I wanted to lose weight so I could look good and feel better about myself. I’ve had a lot of self-confidence issues that I thought would just go away when I finally lost the extra pounds. But, it never happened.
At The Well, God has been showing me the importance of taking care of my body for Him.
It is important to take care of my body because:
It shows good discipline (1 Corinthians 9:27)
I will have more energy for ministry work and for the mission field
I will have more energy for my family
It shows that I can be a good steward of the things that God has given me, which include my health
It glorifies God
These days I am feeling great and looking good! Since taking the focus off of myself and focusing on God (Matthew 6:33), the weight has been coming off!
Its funny, because now that my focus has shifted, the weight loss hasn't become as important to me. And, I find myself purposly not trying to get caught up in it. But, God is showing me that I need to focus on it and talk about it more because it is a part of my testimony and I can use it to glorify Him.
Plus it's not about me. Psalm 67:1-3 says
God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah. That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations. Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee.
God loves to bless us, but it's not just for us. He blesses us so that we can inturn tell others about the goddness of God. So, I'm determined now to give God the glory and credit for each pound because I can say beyond a shadow of a doubt that its not me.
So, I'm guessing now you want to see some proof? Well, I don't have any official numbers for you yet, but here is a before-and-after photo:
Pretty awesome, right? And its all God! Stay tuned for awesome updates!
Friday, March 11, 2011
FINALLY happy with my hair!
I have been wearing two-strand twists in my hair for almost two months now and it is time for them to COME OUT!
So, Wednesday evening I gathered a "crew" together to start the LONG process of freeing my natural tresses. After about 4 1/2 tedious hours, I was FREE! After I finished detangling, washing, and conditioning my hair, I was very happy to have my own hair back.
This is a testimony because this has not always been so. I didn’t always like my hair and I used to get very frustrated with it. To me, it never looked “quite right.” No matter what I did to my hair, twists, curls, straight, ponytail, etc., I was never satisfied.
What God has been showing me is that it really has nothing to do with my hair, I didn’t like myself. I used to hide behind makeup and jewelry, and weaves because I didn’t like the person I thought was underneath. I can’t name a time when I would look in a mirror and say that I looked good without finding something to criticize about myself:
My eyebrows are too bushy
My hair is too nappy/my hair isn't curly enough
So, Wednesday evening I gathered a "crew" together to start the LONG process of freeing my natural tresses. After about 4 1/2 tedious hours, I was FREE! After I finished detangling, washing, and conditioning my hair, I was very happy to have my own hair back.
This is a testimony because this has not always been so. I didn’t always like my hair and I used to get very frustrated with it. To me, it never looked “quite right.” No matter what I did to my hair, twists, curls, straight, ponytail, etc., I was never satisfied.
What God has been showing me is that it really has nothing to do with my hair, I didn’t like myself. I used to hide behind makeup and jewelry, and weaves because I didn’t like the person I thought was underneath. I can’t name a time when I would look in a mirror and say that I looked good without finding something to criticize about myself:
My eyebrows are too bushy
My hair is too nappy/my hair isn't curly enough
My skin is too dull/dry
My hair won’t lay right/my hair won’t sit up right
My teeth aren’t white enough
Blah, blah, blah, etc.
(I’m writing all this to expose the lies of the enemy! He gets us so focused on our “faults” that it’s hard to be thankful for what God has given us!)
I have had a lot of self-confidence issues and it has been very hard for me to understand how anyone could love me because I didn’t love myself. I was too busy trying to find myself in the world’s standards and in other people, looking to others to figure out my worth. Compared to other people, I wasn’t smart enough, funny enough, skinny enough, pretty enough, curvy enough, girly enough, fashionable enough, my hair isn’t long enough or straight enough or curly enough, the lists goes on and on…
At the end of the day I didn’t feel like I was worth very much.
At The Well, I talked to my discipler about this and she recommended reading scriptures about who I am in Christ. The next step was to take these scriptures and speak them over myself. One place she suggested starting was at Psalm 139. The verses that really stuck with me were Psalm 139:13-18
For You formed my inward parts; you covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well.
My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them.
How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; when I awake, I am still with You. (NKJV)
My hair won’t lay right/my hair won’t sit up right
My teeth aren’t white enough
Blah, blah, blah, etc.
(I’m writing all this to expose the lies of the enemy! He gets us so focused on our “faults” that it’s hard to be thankful for what God has given us!)
I have had a lot of self-confidence issues and it has been very hard for me to understand how anyone could love me because I didn’t love myself. I was too busy trying to find myself in the world’s standards and in other people, looking to others to figure out my worth. Compared to other people, I wasn’t smart enough, funny enough, skinny enough, pretty enough, curvy enough, girly enough, fashionable enough, my hair isn’t long enough or straight enough or curly enough, the lists goes on and on…
At the end of the day I didn’t feel like I was worth very much.
At The Well, I talked to my discipler about this and she recommended reading scriptures about who I am in Christ. The next step was to take these scriptures and speak them over myself. One place she suggested starting was at Psalm 139. The verses that really stuck with me were Psalm 139:13-18
For You formed my inward parts; you covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well.My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them.
How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; when I awake, I am still with You. (NKJV)
I have read these verses many times before, but after praying and really digging into it, I was revolutionized by this revelation: God made me who I am.
This may not sound like an astonishing revelation, but follow me here. I remember watching this Skit Guys video on Godtube.com and one of the guys said that God doesn’t make junk. Everything that God makes is amazing; look at the clouds and the trees and the stars, they’re beautiful. In verse 14 it says that all of God’s works are marvelous, which is true. So, if all on God’s works are marvelous, then I must be marvelous.
This may not sound like an astonishing revelation, but follow me here. I remember watching this Skit Guys video on Godtube.com and one of the guys said that God doesn’t make junk. Everything that God makes is amazing; look at the clouds and the trees and the stars, they’re beautiful. In verse 14 it says that all of God’s works are marvelous, which is true. So, if all on God’s works are marvelous, then I must be marvelous.
If God has skillfully wrought me together and took his time to form me, then I must be valuable.
If God has precious thoughts towards me, then I must be precious. And if God thinks about me more times than there are grains of sand, then I must be important because God doesn’t take precious time out of His busy schedule to think about junk.
Man, I’m starting to sound pretty good!
So I took these verses and started to speak them over myself. When I would look into the mirror, as soon as a critical thought would pop up, I would say, “No, I am fearfully and wonderfully made because God makes marvelous things and God made me who I am.” As I began to think about what God thinks of me, the opinions of the world didn’t seem to matter as much. And I know it is God, because all of a sudden, I started looking at myself in the mirror and I noticed I was looking better!
At first, I would say, “I’m looking not-so-bad today.”
Then, “Hmmm, I’m looking pretty good.”
And, all of a sudden, I was like, “Man! When did I start looking so good?”
God has been doing an amazing work on me. I remember a time when I wouldn’t go out the door without makeup on because I was self-conscious about my skin. I remember when I used to feel ugly and naked if I didn’t have earrings on. I remember when I used to get weaves all the time and if I didn’t have this extra hair on my head I’d feel bald-headed.
God started dealing with the makeup and earrings first, showing me that I shouldn’t need materials things to make me feel better about how I looked or who I was. After freeing me from all of that, it came to the hair.
And I don’t know what it is about Black women and their hair.
I have done so much to my tresses trying to make myself look and feel a certain way. But, every time, no matter what I did and no matter how many compliments I received, I wasn’t ever satisfied. When I first went natural, I would hide my hair in weaves and braids so I wouldn’t have to deal with it. I never felt like I looked beautiful, especially not with natural hair.
But this is the way God made me, natural and beautiful; who am I to argue with Him?
Another version of Psalm 139:13-18 reads:
Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out; you formed me in my mother's womb. I thank you, High God—you're breathtaking! Body and soul, I am marvelously made!
I worship in adoration—what a creation! You know me inside and out, You know every bone in my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something. Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you, the days of my life all prepared before I'd even lived one day.
Your thoughts—how rare, how beautiful! God, I'll never comprehend them! I couldn't even begin to count them—any more than I could count the sand of the sea. (The Message)
I am so happy and thankful for my hair now; there are so many people in this world that can’t grow hair. There all people with all different types of diseases that take their hair out. Some of them would give almost anything for the hair I have on my head. God has blessed me and it is a shame that I was too busy listening to the lies of the enemy for so many years to even be grateful and see my full head of hair as a blessing.
If God has precious thoughts towards me, then I must be precious. And if God thinks about me more times than there are grains of sand, then I must be important because God doesn’t take precious time out of His busy schedule to think about junk.
Man, I’m starting to sound pretty good!
So I took these verses and started to speak them over myself. When I would look into the mirror, as soon as a critical thought would pop up, I would say, “No, I am fearfully and wonderfully made because God makes marvelous things and God made me who I am.” As I began to think about what God thinks of me, the opinions of the world didn’t seem to matter as much. And I know it is God, because all of a sudden, I started looking at myself in the mirror and I noticed I was looking better!
At first, I would say, “I’m looking not-so-bad today.”
Then, “Hmmm, I’m looking pretty good.”
And, all of a sudden, I was like, “Man! When did I start looking so good?”
God has been doing an amazing work on me. I remember a time when I wouldn’t go out the door without makeup on because I was self-conscious about my skin. I remember when I used to feel ugly and naked if I didn’t have earrings on. I remember when I used to get weaves all the time and if I didn’t have this extra hair on my head I’d feel bald-headed.
God started dealing with the makeup and earrings first, showing me that I shouldn’t need materials things to make me feel better about how I looked or who I was. After freeing me from all of that, it came to the hair.
And I don’t know what it is about Black women and their hair.
I have done so much to my tresses trying to make myself look and feel a certain way. But, every time, no matter what I did and no matter how many compliments I received, I wasn’t ever satisfied. When I first went natural, I would hide my hair in weaves and braids so I wouldn’t have to deal with it. I never felt like I looked beautiful, especially not with natural hair.
But this is the way God made me, natural and beautiful; who am I to argue with Him?
Another version of Psalm 139:13-18 reads:
Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out; you formed me in my mother's womb. I thank you, High God—you're breathtaking! Body and soul, I am marvelously made!
I worship in adoration—what a creation! You know me inside and out, You know every bone in my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something. Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you, the days of my life all prepared before I'd even lived one day.
Your thoughts—how rare, how beautiful! God, I'll never comprehend them! I couldn't even begin to count them—any more than I could count the sand of the sea. (The Message)
I am so happy and thankful for my hair now; there are so many people in this world that can’t grow hair. There all people with all different types of diseases that take their hair out. Some of them would give almost anything for the hair I have on my head. God has blessed me and it is a shame that I was too busy listening to the lies of the enemy for so many years to even be grateful and see my full head of hair as a blessing.
And natural hair is so beautiful! You can do so many different things with it; I am having a lot of fun right now experimenting and trying out new hairstyles. And it is just me, or has natural hair become the new "thing" all of a sudden? When I look at women with natural hair, I am amazed by their uniqueness, creativity, and boldness. And it all just shows me how cool God really is.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Siege for LIFE
“Lay siege against it, build a siege wall against it… Set your face against it, and it shall be besieged, and you shall lay siege against it.” (Ez 4:2-3 NKJV)
Last weekend, The Well teamed up with Bound4LIFE Atlanta to go on a Silent Siege.
Last weekend, The Well teamed up with Bound4LIFE Atlanta to go on a Silent Siege.
We stood outside of an abortion clinic with red tape over our mouths that read “LIFE.” Together we stood there praying silently from 7 am to 9 pm, in a line, in the rain, for the entire world to see.
A Silent Siege is where we silently stand inthe gap on behalf of our nation and build up a wall of prayer (Ez 22:30). This strategy was given to us in a dream from the Lord...When we make a stand outside of a courthouse or an abortion facility, our stand is for life, mercy, and justice.
When LIFE is written on a piece of red tape and placed over our mouths, we are identifying with the silent cries of the preborn—those who have no voice to defend themselves.
Our stand is NOT a protest. It IS a silent prayer meeting.
We make our appeal to the Judge of the earth and ask Him for speedy justice to be released (Lk 18:7-8).
It’s also a plea for God to subpoena the conscience of the nation.
We dream of the day when every abortion facility in the nation will have long lines of people, young and old alike, standing in silent prayer with Life Tape covering their mouths. If every church would rise up and stand at every abortion facility with sustained fasting and prayer, what could happen? (Bound4LIFE.com)
It’s also a plea for God to subpoena the conscience of the nation.
We dream of the day when every abortion facility in the nation will have long lines of people, young and old alike, standing in silent prayer with Life Tape covering their mouths. If every church would rise up and stand at every abortion facility with sustained fasting and prayer, what could happen? (Bound4LIFE.com)
As I stood there in the rain, I prayed for the babies, that God would keep them and protect them. As I was praying, my brother's song came into my head and I began repeating “save the babies, Lord, save the babies.” I could hear their cries and I could see blood in the streets; it looked like the rain water running down the road. I began to cry, thinking about the babies that never got to live, that never got to smile or see a sunrise. I heard God saying to the nation “I'm blessing you, I am giving you a gift, the gift of life, and you’re killing them.” These babies are gifts from God; not everyone can even have children. Why do we think it’s okay to throw away something so precious?
I repented on behalf of all the women who selfishly killed their children in the name of convenience, because they couldn't get past the burden and see the blessing that God
was trying to give them. I also repented on behalf of those in our community too ashamed, too fearful, and too focused on ourselves to say anything or stand for what is right.
Standing there I could literally feel God’s heart breaking and His sadness; the rain fell like God’s tears. My chest ached and this overwhelming feeling of grief came upon me. Before coming to The Well, I never thought about how our sin affects God. When I use to sin in the past, I would feel sorry and ask God for forgiveness so that He wouldn’t punish me. But I was missing the point; God loves us and it hurts Him when we sin.
I repented on behalf of all the women who selfishly killed their children in the name of convenience, because they couldn't get past the burden and see the blessing that God
was trying to give them. I also repented on behalf of those in our community too ashamed, too fearful, and too focused on ourselves to say anything or stand for what is right.Standing there I could literally feel God’s heart breaking and His sadness; the rain fell like God’s tears. My chest ached and this overwhelming feeling of grief came upon me. Before coming to The Well, I never thought about how our sin affects God. When I use to sin in the past, I would feel sorry and ask God for forgiveness so that He wouldn’t punish me. But I was missing the point; God loves us and it hurts Him when we sin.
At The Well, I have been learning about how to have a real relationship with God, to connect with Him so that I can know His heart and how He feels. It grieves me to think about how my sin makes God feel, especially when I sin on purpose. Jesus died and paid for my sins because He loves me, and when I decide to do something that goes against Him, it breaks His heart. I can hear Him asking, “Why? Why do you continue when I have died for you? When I have given you the grace to overcome? Why do you go back?” And yes, He does get angry; you would too if you gave your heart to somebody and they kept stomping on it, over and over again, because they wanted to do their own thing.
But, because God loves us, he has not thrown us away when we’ve messed up. He has not given up on us. He is still showing us mercy even though thousands of babies die every day. We all deserve hell, but because of Jesus’ loving sacrifice, we have been given the opportunity to have life and life more abundantly. These babies are Gods creation; they deserve to be given the same opportunity for life.
Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.” Jeremiah 1:4-5
God is calling us to stand in the gap and be a voice for those who cannot speak, to be a standard in this backward world.
Then said I: “Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth.”
But the LORD said to me: “Do not say, ‘I am a youth,’ for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and whatever I command you, you shall speak. Do not be afraid of their faces, for I am with you to deliver you,” says the LORD. Jeremiah 1:6-8
But the LORD said to me: “Do not say, ‘I am a youth,’ for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and whatever I command you, you shall speak. Do not be afraid of their faces, for I am with you to deliver you,” says the LORD. Jeremiah 1:6-8
Friday, March 4, 2011
What the world needs now is...love
I saw this comic by Mike Lukovich on ajc.com and I thought it was very interesting:
This comic made me think about how different people view Christians. Unfortunately, we have this overall reputation of being judgmental and hateful. How did this happen?
Christianity has been given a bad name.
While working on my Marketing degree in college, I had a concentration in Public Relations (PR). One of the most important components of a successful company is its image. They can market and sell products all day long, but if the general public considers the company to be bad in any way, it will hurt business. And PR, like the good or bad press a company receives, has a lot to do with helping our hurting that image.
Christianity has received a lot of bad press.
I am so tired of seeing hateful people claiming to be Christians on TV. I see these “Christians” screaming hurtful messages, telling homosexuals that God hates them and they’re going to hell. I see these “Christians” looking down their noses at Muslims and treating them like they are scum. I see these “Christians” judging prostitutes and drug addicts, continually treating them like outcasts and deciding that God doesn’t love them. I see these “Christians” judging other Christians and comparing themselves amongst themselves by standards that aren’t even in the Bible.
I see these “Christians” treating others as if they are so evil and wicked that God doesn’t want anything to do with them.
And because of these “Christians”, people think that there is this selfish, angry, hateful God in heaven waiting to condemn people and send them to hell. People think that unless you’re perfect, like these so called Christians, God wants nothing to do with you.
And these people are the ones we see on the T.V. screen and on the internet sending hurtful, hateful messages around the world.
And this gives Christianity a bad name because last time I checked the Bible said that God is love.
We, as Christians, need to show people the love of God. Now, I'm not saying this because I've got it down pat, but because I can see how love has started to change me.
I used to feel so condemned because of the way that other “Christians” treated me that I just assumed God felt the same way. The more I’ve gotten to know the real and living God, the more I’ve realized that He’s not up there condemning me, but loving me.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. (John 3:16-18)
At The Well, we have been talking about the importance of loving other people. You can’t, or shouldn’t, do ministry without the love of Christ. And, simply and most importantly, you can’t be a good Christian without the love of God.
In 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 it talks about the importance of love:
Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.
So, we can know a whole bunch of scriptures, we can go to church every Sunday, we can know all the right “Christian” phrases, we can volunteer and do good things and be pretty decent “Christian people”, but if we do not love others like God loves them, then it all means nothing.
I’m saying all this because I‘ve been there. And I know this because I used to do it. It was so easy to get caught up, thinking that because I go to church and do all these things I’m somehow now better than people who don’t. I have noticed that there are a lot of “Christians” that get so focused on the things they do (or don’t do) and the few little scriptures that they have followed that they’ve missed the whole point of the Bible.
I have been in church my whole life. And what I noticed is that some church folk have this religiousness and fakeness about them; they can go through all the motions without any true emotion. They can sing all the songs on Sunday and tell you that they “love you with the love of the Lord”, but it’s empty and not real. They don’t have Gods love in them. And it’s a shame because they have been deceived.
John 15:12-13 says “This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” Jesus laid down His life for us, even those of us who treat him like dirt, even for those who hate Him. He loves us so much that He laid His life down. If Jesus Christ loves, and we call ourselves His followers, then who are we not to love?
How can we look down our noses at anyone, knowing that we are only sinners saved by grace? What makes us better than anyone else? How can we say we are Christians and not have God’s love? It’s time for us as a church to re-evaluate our salvation to see if we are even in the faith.
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. (1 John 4:7-11)
God loves all people because God is love!
Now, there are things in our lives that God doesn’t like, but He doesn’t hate us as people. He has given us each free will, the power to do, believe in, and live whatever we want, even if our ways separate us from Him.
He loves each and every one of us and wants a relationship with each and every one of us. He wants to save us, heal us, cleanse us, and give us abundant life.
So, as Christians, we are God’s representatives on earth; we are His PR. And quite frankly, as a whole we are doing a pretty crappy job of keeping God’s good name.
We as Christians need to get ourselves together, stop hating, and love God’s people. We need to consider and love Muslims, Buddhists, Jehovah Witnesses, Mormons, etc and respect them as God-created human beings. We need to reach out to and love homosexuals and other people who are hurting that the church has turned its back on. We need to connect with and love prostitutes, pimps, and drug addicts and all those who are physically, mentally, and spiritually trapped in bondage.
We need to love them just like we need God to love us.
Leave a comment and tell me what you think; I’d like to hear from you.
Christianity has been given a bad name.
While working on my Marketing degree in college, I had a concentration in Public Relations (PR). One of the most important components of a successful company is its image. They can market and sell products all day long, but if the general public considers the company to be bad in any way, it will hurt business. And PR, like the good or bad press a company receives, has a lot to do with helping our hurting that image.
Christianity has received a lot of bad press.
I am so tired of seeing hateful people claiming to be Christians on TV. I see these “Christians” screaming hurtful messages, telling homosexuals that God hates them and they’re going to hell. I see these “Christians” looking down their noses at Muslims and treating them like they are scum. I see these “Christians” judging prostitutes and drug addicts, continually treating them like outcasts and deciding that God doesn’t love them. I see these “Christians” judging other Christians and comparing themselves amongst themselves by standards that aren’t even in the Bible.
I see these “Christians” treating others as if they are so evil and wicked that God doesn’t want anything to do with them.
And because of these “Christians”, people think that there is this selfish, angry, hateful God in heaven waiting to condemn people and send them to hell. People think that unless you’re perfect, like these so called Christians, God wants nothing to do with you.
And these people are the ones we see on the T.V. screen and on the internet sending hurtful, hateful messages around the world.
And this gives Christianity a bad name because last time I checked the Bible said that God is love.
We, as Christians, need to show people the love of God. Now, I'm not saying this because I've got it down pat, but because I can see how love has started to change me.
I used to feel so condemned because of the way that other “Christians” treated me that I just assumed God felt the same way. The more I’ve gotten to know the real and living God, the more I’ve realized that He’s not up there condemning me, but loving me.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. (John 3:16-18)
At The Well, we have been talking about the importance of loving other people. You can’t, or shouldn’t, do ministry without the love of Christ. And, simply and most importantly, you can’t be a good Christian without the love of God.
In 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 it talks about the importance of love:
Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.
So, we can know a whole bunch of scriptures, we can go to church every Sunday, we can know all the right “Christian” phrases, we can volunteer and do good things and be pretty decent “Christian people”, but if we do not love others like God loves them, then it all means nothing.
I’m saying all this because I‘ve been there. And I know this because I used to do it. It was so easy to get caught up, thinking that because I go to church and do all these things I’m somehow now better than people who don’t. I have noticed that there are a lot of “Christians” that get so focused on the things they do (or don’t do) and the few little scriptures that they have followed that they’ve missed the whole point of the Bible.
I have been in church my whole life. And what I noticed is that some church folk have this religiousness and fakeness about them; they can go through all the motions without any true emotion. They can sing all the songs on Sunday and tell you that they “love you with the love of the Lord”, but it’s empty and not real. They don’t have Gods love in them. And it’s a shame because they have been deceived.
John 15:12-13 says “This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” Jesus laid down His life for us, even those of us who treat him like dirt, even for those who hate Him. He loves us so much that He laid His life down. If Jesus Christ loves, and we call ourselves His followers, then who are we not to love?
How can we look down our noses at anyone, knowing that we are only sinners saved by grace? What makes us better than anyone else? How can we say we are Christians and not have God’s love? It’s time for us as a church to re-evaluate our salvation to see if we are even in the faith.
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. (1 John 4:7-11)
God loves all people because God is love!
Now, there are things in our lives that God doesn’t like, but He doesn’t hate us as people. He has given us each free will, the power to do, believe in, and live whatever we want, even if our ways separate us from Him.
He loves each and every one of us and wants a relationship with each and every one of us. He wants to save us, heal us, cleanse us, and give us abundant life.
So, as Christians, we are God’s representatives on earth; we are His PR. And quite frankly, as a whole we are doing a pretty crappy job of keeping God’s good name.
We as Christians need to get ourselves together, stop hating, and love God’s people. We need to consider and love Muslims, Buddhists, Jehovah Witnesses, Mormons, etc and respect them as God-created human beings. We need to reach out to and love homosexuals and other people who are hurting that the church has turned its back on. We need to connect with and love prostitutes, pimps, and drug addicts and all those who are physically, mentally, and spiritually trapped in bondage.
We need to love them just like we need God to love us.
Leave a comment and tell me what you think; I’d like to hear from you.
Welcome!
Hello everyone and welcome to my blog! My name is Ynette Evans and I am currently a second-year student at The Well Discipleship Training School in Atlanta, GA. During the day, I work for the School Nutrition Program with the Georgia Department of Education. As of January 19, I have worked there for over a year! I am so thankful to have such a wonderful job and be in school learning more about God and being a Christian!
For now, I'll keep it short and simple.
As I go on with this blog, I hope that this site will become interactive; as I let you into my life, thoughts and experiences, you can comment and share your own thoughts and experiences. I also check this site and my emails regularly, so please feel free to contact me with any questions, comments, prayer requests, etc; It would be so wonderful to hear from you!
So, again welcome; I am honored that you have become a part of my journey!
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