It's Been A While!!!

Hey, Jotters!

First of all, I am soooooooo sorry for leaving you hanging for two months. My summer was hectic, and I needed some time to myself for a while.

Taking some time to myself to figure out life proved to be very enlightening. I had slid into a state of depression since breaking up with my boyfriend, and satan kept knocking me down as soon as I would start to get better. Let me tell you guys, everyone is knocked down once and a while so don't feel ashamed if you ever find yourself feeling alone, frustrated, worthless, angry, and all that other junk satan loves to see. He knows our weaknesses, and he WILL use them against us. But good news! We have God!

I just want to use this post to stress to you all that even when our lives feel out of control, God has it under control. Like, always! Sometimes you just need to stop, take a deep breath, pray, and spend some time with God. It is SO important to use Him as your first resource to help you back up. When you use Him, He'll send the rest of the resources you will need to get better, He promises.

The Bible tell us that:

"Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter, you will restore my life again; from the depths of the earth you will again bring me up." -Psalm 71:20

And my personal favorite:

"The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." -Psalm 34:18

If ever you feel as though you've got nothing left, turn to Jesus because He is the only answer to fixing our problems and restoring our souls. I admit, sometimes I forget to use God as a source of comfort and try to pull through it myself. This summer I did that a lot because I was in such a pit of despair that I felt that even God couldn't fix it. But you know what's cool? He did!

No matter what you are facing, God will help you through it. I am still praying to God to help me get through this breakup and to keep moving forward. It's taking time, but God has perfect timing and perfect reasons as to why we may still be facing struggles. Many times it may be our own selves holding onto the struggle. No matter what the case, spend some time with God by reading His word and opening up your hear to him by praying and being completely honest.

God is always here for you, Jotters. Don't ever forget His awesome love!!!

Love always, Trish

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Top 10 Things My Rents Taught Me

Hey, my lovely Jotters!

Alright, so I'm taking a new approach with this blog post because I feel it's a very important subject for all those under the age of 20 (including me), and my typical format just didn't seem to fit with how I wanted to explain this topic: Honoring you father and mother.

Before you roll your eyes at me, I understand that many moms and/or dads out there don't meet up-to-par with biblical standards, but hear me out. Even if you don't have a mom and dad, maybe you were raised by family or friends or at least have someone you can look up to as a parental figure (they're pretty important to help guide you in life), just read this post.

This subject is often disregarded as "unnecessary", "lame", or even painful. But over the years I've been taught a lot of things by my parents (even if they never realized what they taught me) that I wish I knew when I was 10 so I could be ready later on, but I had to learn the hard way by ignoring them and being kicked in the butt later by my mistakes. That's why I want you guys to know now what I've learned over the past 20 years before you decide to ignore really important advice, because God instructs us clearly:

"Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you." (Exodus 20:12)

1. Try new things, even if you DO NOT want to.
    

So this was one that probably would have come in handy if I didn't enjoy TV so much. Although I enjoyed going places with my parents on vacation or enjoying a new flick, I should've gotten WAY more involved in school and with friends than I did. Unfortunately, I missed out on a lot because I failed to get out of the house once and a while and actually do something during my middle school years. Even in high school I ignored my dad's advice about visiting a college I had no interest in whatsoever. I eventually did and guess what? I'm studying there now. Lesson learned, take advantage of opportunities while you're young because it prepares you for later on when you'll be bombarded with twice the amount of responsibilities, and you never know, it could become a lifetime passion.

2. Save, save, SAVE.

Spending money used to be my job. I couldn't have enough stuff. Whenever I'd get a paycheck, it was off to the mall. I hadn't a care in the world because what's the fun of having money if you can't spend it? Answer, you can use it for you education so you can get way more money in the future with an actual job. If I would've saved as much as I spent, my college would be half paid for. So start saving now, you won't regret it.

3. Getting sleep is a good thing.

"Go to bed!" was THE worst and most annoying thing I've ever heard come out of my parents' mouths when I was still living under their roof. Who needs sleep when I can nap after school, there's too many things to do at night! Now that I'm busy in college and HAVE to stay up late, I really wish I would've taken advantage of those glorious nine hours a night while I could. Plus, sleeping prevents old age from setting in faster. Let's stay young as long as possible.

4. Study and do your homework.

I admit, I'm a procrastinator big time and a lot of that can be blamed on the bad habits I developed before college. I got good grades regardless of studying a lot because school was way too easy. I say that now because college gave me a huge wake-up call. I now have tons of homework, even though I take half the classes, and I have a harder time studying and doing my homework because it's way harder. So develop good habits now, they'll stick with you and will be extremely useful. 

5. Dating in middle school and high school causes too much stress, so skip on that for now.

This was a huge realization after I got to college. I had wanted a boyfriend since 5th grade and finally got  my wish when I started high school. I was a pretty big airhead so looking at other relationships I was like "That's never going to last, they're awful together" or even "They're way too young. Why are they even dating?!" I should've put my money where my mouth was on that one because looking back now, I could've been doing so many more things I wanted to do and finding myself and what I was all about before I had to pick a major for college. So my advice, wait until college because it saves you time, stress, and a broken heart.

6. You're not as smart as you think you are. 

Maybe it's the fact that once we all turn into teenagers we think we've developed super powers and our parents got dumber, or that all that TV and internet gave us really big egos and we think we're full of the world's knowledge. I don't know, but I thought my parents were really stupid. Everything they said was pointless and would never be useful later. Hmm, now that all their advice is being used today now that I'm basically living on my own, they got pretty smart in a hurry.

7. You're going to get a lot farther in life if you get your nose out of the air.

Teenagers are just stuck up, and I was one of them. I thought I was better than everyone else and that whatever everyone else was doing was stupid. Let me tell you now, treating everyone with respect and kindness is going to subtract your enemies and multiply your friends. Trust me on this one, even a simple smile can get you farther than an eye roll, and you feel a lot better about yourself and others in the end. So pop that ego bubble and start being nice for a change, even if you hate the person(s).

8. Spend time with loved ones while they're here.

I love my family and I always will, but I realize that I spent so much time hanging with friends, doing school stuff, or just staying at home that I forgot what the most important thing next to God was, family. I have lost two grandmas, a cousin, and an aunt in the past 6 years and if only I had taken more time to visit once in a while than maybe I could've developed stronger relationships with them and would have gotten to say goodbye. So please, spend as much time as possible with the ones you love while there's time. Our time here on earth is going to flash by faster than we know.

9. Who cares what you look like.

This is a tough one to process because we always think someone's constantly judging us on our appearance and how we dress. I always had to have makeup on and dress super neat whenever I went out in public because I always felt eyes on me no matter where I was or who the person was. I admit, that habit is still hard to break but I've realized that typically people just don't care! The truth is, you only THINK someone's looking at you, and even if they are, who cares! Their opinion doesn't matter. You look good no matter what.

And the most important thing my rents taught me....

10. Even if no one else is there for you, God always will be.

If you haven't paid any attention to anything I've said so far, listen to this. God will NEVER stab you in the back, use you, cheat on you, break His promise, abandon you, hurt you, talk behind your back, steal from you, lie to you, or disappoint you. God knows what's best for you and that's why he gave us parental figures. My friends, nothing is more important than knowing God loves you and is planning your future this instant. Sometimes we may stray of the path intended, but He uses our mistakes so that we may be redirected back to Him towards a future full of hope and our wildest dreams, because when all else fails...God won't.

Love you.

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Tearing The Mask

Hello, my lovely friends :)

I recently joined tumblr ( http://all-for-his-name.tumblr.com/ ) and I've been following some really cool young Christians who have such amazing faiths and ideas about Jesus.

For this blog, I decided to take a post from one of the people I have been following about the pressures on Christians in today's world. This post really spoke to me because I struggle often with pressures to be perfect and live a sinless life. But the truth is, WE CAN'T. Read this post and be filled with the astounding mercy and grace of God. Hope you enjoy!

Tearing The Mask by Megan Dutill

The problem with being a Christian is that somewhere along the line people got the idea that Christians are really good people.

We’re supposed to have it all together. Good grades, families, jobs. We’re always happy, always giving, and if we occasionally run into snarls, they’re not big ones. We don’t cheat on tests or boyfriends, get pregnant outside marriage, or get addicted to anything.

As Mary Poppins would say, we’re practically perfect.

Except we’re not.

We’re so afraid to fail this standard (that apparently everyone else meets), that we’re expected to meet – that we hide. And we carry an awful lot of pressure, shame, and guilt into that hiding spot with us.

Have you ever felt that you just couldn’t tell someone what you’re really going through? You don’t want to tell people that you’ve been depressed, because that might mean you’re a “bad Christian.” “Good Christians” are joyful all the time, right? You can’t tell people that you struggle with an addiction. Or your parents. Or even that you’ve been abused.

All of those things would ruin your image. You wouldn’t be a “good Christian” anymore. Maybe you would be downright rejected.

So you try to hide it.

A few years ago, I doubted my faith. I didn’t know if I really believed that God existed any more. I doubted that praying would do any good if He did exist.

And I was terrified. I wasn’t supposed to doubt Jesus and Christianity. Maybe I had never had any faith at all. What was the matter with me? Dare I tell anyone? Maybe people looked up to me. What would they think? Was I failing everyone and everything by having questions and doubts?

It took a long time for me to muster up the courage to talk about it. But when I finally did, it was so wonderful to be able to walk through it with someone.

Now, lest you get the wrong idea, doubt isn’t a sin. In fact, I would even argue that having questions – and doubts, for a season – is a normal and necessary part of spiritual growth. But this fake mask we try to wear condemns both the things that are sinful and the things, like doubt and depression, that are not.

Both things need to be exposed to Light. We can’t hide them any longer, and we can’t carry the burden of all those secrets and shame by ourselves anymore.

Because when we hide, we’re hurting ourselves by not getting help and not being real. We’re hurting others because we’re continuing the mad masquerade. When we break free, reach out, admit we’re not paper-doll perfect – we find healing. And we give others the courage to follow us, to speak up and find hope and healing for themselves.

The truth is that none of us is perfect. I’m nowhere near it. I don’t know why we feel such pressure to look perfect and pretend to be so, pressure to have others think we are. But sadly enough, the back-breaking pressure is there.

I’m not talking about glorifying our sins, but breaking free from the shame and darkness that hold us back and breaking free from the rules that say no one should know this and we definitely can’t talk about this in church. For we weren’t made to live this messy life alone; we desperately need a safe place where we can be real. And frankly, if we can’t find this strong community among Christians, we’re going to turn somewhere else.

You just can’t spend your entire life hiding and pretending.

And yet, Christianity should be the ideal place to turn to: a place where people understand, can encourage and challenge you and always point you back to the Cross.

Sometimes, we are a part of a community like that. And other times, even in our churches, that freedom just isn’t there. Other people are hiding and wounded and afraid to admit they’re not perfect either, and sadly that can lead to more wounds and judgment.

We’re all in the process of being healed and made new. No one is there yet. And whatever the secret you are hiding, I promise you that God’s grace and mercy are bigger.

And in the meantime, I pray that we would have the courage to be honest and full of grace. The courage to get help if we need it, and give help when others need it. To live honestly with others and let them be genuine with us. To be a safe and grace-filled place that others can confess secret sins and troubles to.

Life is messy. We are messy. But the glorious truth is that Christ is making us new and making us whole – that because of His sacrifice, God already sees us as righteous. In His eyes, we already measure up.

And that is the truth that will set us free and let us rip off the mask.

Much Love <3

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How Do You Become A Christian? (Follow Up)

Welcome back, Jotters!

Today I am posting the final blog for "How Do You Become A Christian?", and I'm so glad you've been following me these past few days and have determination to experience true joy and love that no other source can provide. If you haven't read the first two blogs, go and do that! Even if you've already accepted Jesus, it'll remind you why you've accepted him and remind you of his everlasting love. 

So we've talked about HOW you become a Christian, but what happens now?? How do we know that Christ is actually in our lives now that we've accepted him??

In order to decide whether Christ has heard your prayer and whether he has entered your life is if you have received him into your life. Christ has promised us in Revelation 3:20 that He would come into our lives and be our Savior and friend so that we can get to know him personally. Would the Son of God mislead you with this promise? The one who died a brutal and bloody death so that you may experience God's love without shame? On what authority do you know that God has answered your prayer? The trustworthiness of God himself and his word are what you should take rest in. God never lies, because he can't! He's all perfect and holy.

The bible also promises that when we accept Christ into our lives we are given eternal life with him in heaven.


"And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life." (1 John 5:11-13)

Thank God often that Christ is in your life and that he will never leave you (Hebrews 13:5). You can know on the basis of his perfect promise that Christ lives in you and that you have eternal life from the very moment you invite him in. A perfect, painless, wonderful life in paradise!

But I need to remind you all of something very important: We cannot depend on feelings. The promise of God's word, the Bible- not our feelings -is our authority. The Christian lives by faith (trust) in the trustworthiness of God himself and his word. Flying in a jet can illustrate the relationship among fact (God and his word), faith (our trust in God and his word), and feeling (the result of our faith and obedience) (John 14:21).

To be transported by a jet, we must place our faith in the trustworthiness of the aircraft and the pilot who flies it. Our feelings of confidence or fear do not affect the ability of the jet to transport us to our destination, though they do affect how much we enjoy the trip. In the same way, we as Christians do not depend on feelings or emotions, but we place our faith (trust) in the trustworthiness of God and the promises of his word.
Now that we have started our personal relationship with Jesus, many things happen the moment we ask him into our lives, including the following:

• Christ came into your life (Revelation 3:20 and Colossians 1:27)
• Your sins were forgiven (Colossians 1:14)
• You became a child of God (John 1:12)
• You received eternal life (John 5:24)
• You began the great adventure for which God created you (John 10:10, 2 Corinthians 5:17, and 1 Thessalonians 5:18)
  
  Can you imagine anything more wonderful that could happen to you than entering into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ? You can thank God in prayer right now for what he has done for you. By thanking God, we demonstrate our faith.

Now, I don't want you to feel overwhelmed or lost on how to continue your new journey in Christ. So to enjoy your new relationship with God, there are many things to help you grow in God.
Spiritual growth results from trusting Jesus Christ.

"...The righteous will live by faith." (Galatians 3:11)

A life of faith will enable you to trust God increasingly with every detail of your life, and to practice the following:

• G Go to God in prayer daily (John 15:7).
• R Read God's word daily (Acts 17:11)- begin with the Gospel of John.
• O Obey God moment by moment (John 14:21).
• W Witness for Christ by your life and words (Matthew 4:19 and John 15:8).
• T Trust God for every detail of your life (1 Peter 5:7).
• H Holy Spirit- Allow him to control and empower your daily life and witness (Galatians 5:16,17; Acts 1:8).

Remember, your walk with Christ depends on what you allow him to do in and through you empowered by the Holy Spirit (Christ living in you), NOT what you do for him through self effort.

Congratulations, Jotters! You've accepted Christ into your life and you can now experience what it means to live a life of heavenly joy! You are not alone in your journey though. I have linked sites on my home page to God-filled people who can help you continue your journey and help you develop a stable foundation for your new faith and life. Feel free to email me too (trish_2950@hotmail.com) or comment below on your success or if you have questions.

Love you all, and am praying for you! Trish

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How Do You Become A Christian? (Part 2)

Hi, my Beloved Jotters!

So if you haven't read part one of How Do You Become A Christian, I advise you do so now before you read further. It'll all tie together better with this lesson and leave you less confused. We're picking up from yesterday right where we left off on learning how to become a Christian.

The last thing we talked about yesterday, was that the only way to get to God was to cross the bridge that separates our sinful selves from a holy and perfect God, and that knowing Christ is the only way to cross that bridge isn't enough. So what else do we need to know to ensure that we are saved? Isn't knowing Jesus enough?

The fourth thing I want you all to know is how we are to respond to this truth. We must individually receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord; then we can know God personally and experience his plan, because without gaining a relationship with him, we cannot fully experience his love and plan for us.

"Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God." (John 1:12)

We must receive Christ, but we must have faith to receive him:

"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works, so that no one can boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9)

If you just believe that a family member or your best friend loves you, you can't get to know them or develop a better relationship with them by knowing this alone, you have to spend time with them and create a relationship with them. Jesus wants us to know him personally! Read John 3:1-8 to understand the new birth we experience when we receive Christ (I have a link on my home page to an online Bible if you do not own one).

But we are not just given the choice to know Jesus, he personally invites us to get to know him and receive him:

[Christ speaking] "Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with Me." (Revelation 3:20)

When we receive Christ we must turn away from ourselves (repentance) and turn to God and trust that Christ will come into our lives to forgive us of our sins and make us what he wants us to be. Just to agree intellectually that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that he died on the cross for our sins isn't enough, but either is having an emotional experience. We receive Christ by faith, as an act of our will, because God has given us the choice whether or not to believe in his son and to develop a relationship with him. 

On the left shows A LIFE WITHOUT JESUS CHRIST. We put ourselves at the center and sitting on the throne, while Christ (+) is outside.

On the right shows A LIFE ENTRUSTED TO CHRIST. Christ is in the center, sitting on the throne, and self yields to Christ.

How about you, which circle best describes your life?
Which circle would you like to have represent your life? Just dwell on those questions for a moment.

So, now that we know all the incredible things God has done for us and is doing for us and how much Jesus Christ loves us, how do we receive him into our lives so that we can start to develop a relationship with him?

Right now, you can receive Christ right now, by faith, through prayer. (Prayer is talking to God) God knows your heart and is not as concerned with your words as he is with the attitude of your heart. Be honest and sincere, he knows everything about you! Here is a prayer you can pray to God if you are ready to accept Christ as your Savior and friend so that he may begin to heal and save you:

Lord Jesus, I want to know You personally.
Thank You for dying on the cross for my sins.
I open the door of my life and receive You as my Savior and Lord.
Thank You for forgiving me of my sins and giving me eternal life.
Take control of the throne of my life.
Make me the kind of person You want me to be.

Does this prayer express the desire of your heart?

If it does, pray this prayer right now, and Christ will come into your life (instantly!) as he promised.

God understands that sometimes we may find it difficult to surrender our lives over to him so that he may take control, but don't worry! He only wants good things for you and he provides everything you need to prepare you for a life of faith and acceptance of Christ. I pray that all of you have decided to accept Christ into your heart today. If you have not, that's ok too. If you aren't ready to take this leap of faith, I encourage you to take the time everyday to pray to God and ask that he comfort you and provide you strength to accept his son. It'll be the best thing you've ever done with your life.

Tomorrow, I'll provide you with follow up points so that you are ready for this new life Christ has given you through his bloodshed. Thank you, Jotters for reading through these posts, because just reading them is a step towards a new life of hope. I pray for you all and your new journeys in Christ!

Love you, Trish

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Apology

Hi there, my fellow Jotters!

So, I'm writing this post to say I'm sorry. My post about "How to Become a Christian" was prematurely posted on Saturday, June 18 before I had a chance to finish. I noticed many of you looked at it right after I had posted it, and I am sincerely sorry for the disappointment I may have caused you from not finishing my post. I hope that through this apology you can forgive me for the mess up and go back and read the finished post. I will try my best not to let this mistake happen again. Thank you for remaining faithful! And may God bless you abundantly today!

Love, Trish

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Funday Tuesday!

Hi again, Jotters!

Since I missed Sunday, I still wanted to post a fun pic for you guys to lighten your spirits and get you through the week. Read the previous blog and then this blog and get tons of warm fuzzies :) Enjoy, Jotters!

 

Love you guys and have a great day!

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