New View

My views on the "Christian life" have been changing a lot recently. Since I've been attending different churches and hearing different ideas on theology, I've felt more free in my faith than I ever have. I never thought that there was any way to view theology other than the way that I've been taught growing up. But I now know otherwise. Here are a few quotes from the various churches that I've been to recently, that really helped me change my perspective.

"You don't need a list of rules to tell what's right or wrong. Just love God and love people, and you will end up doing the right thing." .......I've been living as if I am bound up by rules and regulations, thinking I absolutely have to do this and that and the other thing in order to glorify God. But really it is much more simple. All I need do is love God and love people, and God will show me what I need to do to bring Him glory. This is incredibly freeing! :)

"Christianity demands an elasticity of the mind. It should never be like concrete. Make a place for spontaneity. What God requires and what God accepts are sometimes very different." .....For me, this means that I am no longer obligated to believe the same things all the time. I am perfectly free to change how I think about certain things. And it's alright to have contrasting views from other people; not everyone has to believe the same exact things in every area of Christianity!

I now feel more free to love and accept /everyone/, no matter what, because that's what Jesus did. He ate with sinners and loved on sinners, and did not care what others thought about His doing that. Jesus came to be a friend of sinners, not to impose rules and regulations on them to make their lives more difficult. I read in a book recently that the probable reason why sinners don't like Christians is because Christians tell them that they have to obey all sorts of rules in order to please God. God is not looking for slaves, He is looking for people to love like He loves His Son. Our God is love!

(I know some of you might not agree with what I wrote, but it's ok. I'm just writing what God has been kind enough to teach me. I am not here to get in a debate/argument with anyone.)    

God moves in a mysterious way

God is so awesome, I want to tell the whole world all that He has done for me! But it would take an entire day to type up everything, and I doubt that anyone would actually read a blog post that was 100 pages long. (ok, maybe not /that/ long, but you get the idea) So I'm going to write about a small part of how my Father has blessed me.

Last week was one of the hardest weeks ever, due to various circumstances and my very sinful reaction to them. I can't recall ever being under satanic attack before, but I'm pretty sure that Satan was after me last week. (Now you're probably thinking, 'how can this be a blessing from God?' Just hold on, I'll get to that.) I was literally depressed, consumed by thoughts of my circumstances and how I deserved better and how I would be sad forever if things didn't change to my liking. I was not smiling at all, which, if you know me, is not normal. To be completely honest, I didn't see the point of living anymore.

Side note: This is no one's fault but my own. No one is to blame but myself (and Satan) for how I reacted to the circumstances that God perfectly planned for me last week.

Alrighty, on to the good stuff!

It's hard to say exactly what happened. But basically, God gently but firmly shook me awake and said, "Hello! You're wallowing in self-pity, thinking only about yourself and what you want. You imagine that what you desire is the only possible scenario that I could have planned for you. Stop this foolish, selfish, prideful thinking! I know what's best for you, and I have something so much better for you than what you imagine you should have. Trust me, I will never take away anything from you without giving you back something far better. I have an amazing future planned for you, my dear one!"

God dramatically changed my outlook on my situation. He changed my focus from my present circumstances to the bigger picture of what He may be calling me to. He greatly restored my joy, to the point where now I just want to smile at everyone I see. :) He reminded me of all the blessings He has given me, and of how much He loves me. He helped me to accept that things are the way they are, and nothing I do will change that, and then move on and find out what He wants me to do next. He is helping me heal and let go.

My Father is so kind, good, faithful, loving, patient, gentle, and I could keep going on and on. I'm abundantly grateful that I have such an awesome Savior and friend, who will never ever leave me!

Random Fact Wednesday (9)

Happy Hump Day! :)

Today's random fact about me: I clean up messes and fix things, even if they aren't mine. It's just a habit, possibly springing from the fact that I have a kind nature. For example, whenever I see dirty dishes in the sink, I don't think twice about putting them in the dishwasher or washing them. If there's trash on the floor, even in a public restroom, I pick it up and throw it in the trash (Don't worry, I wash my hands thoroughly afterward!) because I don't want anyone else to have to deal with it.

Several times, my "helpful habit" has led to me feeling like I'm the only one doing any work, but it's my own fault. Perhaps I need to cut back on how much I do for other people, or else learn to rejoice in the fact that God gave me a servant's heart and 'press on'.

I'll end with a random quotable quote from Pirates of the Caribbean. "A dishonest man, you can always trust to be dishonest. Honestly. It's the honest ones you have to watch out for. You never know when they might do something stupid."

New adventure

Well, I moved yesterday, into a house with 5 other single girls. This shall be quite an adventure.

Our living room. Before:

 After:

My bedroom at my parents' house

All my stuff barely fit into my car. It was packed to the roof! But at least I didn't have to rent a truck.

I'll post pictures of the new house, once we get everything organized. :)