A Super Hero Story

Well with everyone in Avengers mood lately I've been really focused on God and all that. (In case you didn't read my last blog, this time has really impacted me. God has odd ways sometimes.) Today I listened to a song called "The Invasion" by one of my favorite artists, Trip Lee. It was so amazing! I've heard the song a billion times but this time it really hit me. It's a rap song about Jesus coming back for us and Him saving the day. I love the picture of Jesus saving the world. Love it. Because I've seen enough Star Wars documentaries, (Yes, I have to bring that into this.) one of the things they say made those movies a hit was the general story line. Because it was so relate able. The story of a princess in trouble and a little farm boy who comes to rescue her. Everything about it was just...classic.
   There are two things that people love in a story that can make it a hit. 1. A hero, and 2. Love. Everyone loves the Avengers. A story about a group of heroes who are amazing and can fight like awesomeness. The special effects and stuff helped, but we love stories of heroes. This all got me thinking about the super hero story I'm in. It goes like this:
   A long time ago, before the earth was made there was this guy. (He was awesome.) and He created the world. He made two people. He told them they could do whatever they wanted....except eat from one tree. Then enters the evil villain with creepy music playing in the background. (this guy isn't anything like Loki. This guys not awesome. At all.) Long story short, he makes the people disobey and then evil enters the world. It's called Sin. Now that everything is messed up the people can't be with their Creator and things are wrong. But He's got a plan. (A very genius one may I add.) Some thousand years later He sends His son. His Son came to save the world. He came and lived as an example. He was a healer and could perform miracles. He was a hero. But one day...He gets killed. He died the most painful death anyone ever could. He was beaten and hung on a cross. Now what? This Hero that everyone thought would save them was now dead. How could this happen? Then comes the part of the story where He heroically comes back alive. He conquered death and saved us when we couldn't save ourselves. But He came for us while we were still His enemies. When we were covered in sin. His love for us was so intense that nothing could stop it. Not even death.
   Jesus is my Hero.
   But unlike any classic super hero story, I'm not the girl who's trapped and in need. I'm the bad guy. I'm the one running from the hero. I'm the one who tried to get it all on my own. Because I thought I was to good. I put myself above them all. Because "I'm good enough. I can do it by myself." In hero stories do you ever see the good guy die to save the villain? No. But that's what happened. I did nothing to earn the love I got. Can you wrap your head around that? The hero died to save me. The villain. That's crazy love. He died for you. For me. For everyone. What an incredible super hero story.
   But it doesn't end there. One day He's coming back and He's going to take everyone who believes in Him and take them home. To be with Him forever in heaven.
   That's my Hero. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around all that. I've known all this for over 8 years and I still can't believe His love for me. Once you put your faith in what He did on the cross and know that that's your only way to heaven, that He saved you, you can go to heaven too. He came to save you.
   I don't know about you but that's the best super hero story I've ever heard.

Unconditional Love

(Warning: If you haven't seen the Avengers then....wow. Go see it and then read this.)

Wow. God is incredible. Ok, God speaks to me in really unusual ways and sometimes people think I'm crazy or childish and stuff. But this is like, God. This isn't childish. It's His love. Now that I've got that point across I want to tell you about how God spoke to me today. Well, for the past week I've been praying and asking God to show me His love. Not just in a little feeling, in a legit psychical way. I asked Him to give me a visual of how much He loves me. When I asked for that I was thinking something like someone telling me something or reading a bible verse, you know? But God's a lot more creative then I am and He decided to do it in...a little unusual way.
   On Monday I saw the Avengers. It was SOOOOO epic! I loved it! Then yesterday I wanted to go with my family to see it. I almost didn't go. So after seeing it twice I've been in a super Avengers mood and all that. So I prayed again. I knew it had something to do with God and I asked Him to show me how this related to Him and how could I see Him in this simple movie. Let's just say God answered all of my prayers. Big time. (I'm about to go super geek on you so watch out.)
   My favorite character is Loki (Yes the bad guy. Don't judge.) and I realized one of my favorite thing about that movie was his relationship to his older brother Thor. Now, Loki is a bad guy. All he wants is revenge on Thor and power and glory and all that stuff. In the movie Thor, Loki tries to kill his older brother. He's mad because he always had to live in the shadow of his brother and he was upset because he thinks he's the rightful king. So Loki does all these things to Thor, trying to kill him, stab him, fight him, yell at him, and is just generally mean to him. But Thor...He doesn't retaliate. When Loki says he hates him, Thor says he loves him. He decides that he's going to love his brother regardless of his wrongs and the way he has been treated by him. Loki did NOTHING to deserve that love. In fact, all he did was fight him and throw it all in his face. That's how it is with God. All we want is what this world can offer. We want fame, glory and power. So we fight God and yell at him. But he loves us. God's love is UNCONDITIONAL! His love for us isn't reliant on us or how we treat Him. There is nothing we can possibly do to make God stop loving us. NOTHING!
   Its so crazy...like, it's utterly mind blowing. God literally showed me a visual of His intense love for me. But I'm hardly scratching the surface. His love for me, for you, for all of us is so big and so crazy that we can't even comprehend it. It doesn't matter what I do. He's going to love me always and forever.
   Wow. I really hope this made you think. It's amazing how with everything people are going through, God answered my one little prayer. I just wanted to see a movie. But when I asked for a picture of His love...I had no idea it would look this beautiful.

Honor God With Your Facebook

(Side note: I wrote this blog MONTHS ago and thought it posted. Turns out that it just saved to my drafts.....hmmmm. Any ways, here is my blog short, simple and straight to the point. Enjoy!)

Hey! I just wanted to start off by saying that I love Facebook. I go on it all the time. But a lot of the stuff I see on there, isn't very God honoring. My goal is to use my facebook as a way of encouraging others. Every tme I post something I think "Does this honor God?" Or "Will this lift someone up or bring them down?" And I encourage you to do the same thing!

What someone says on facebook can really bring someone down, but if you chose your words wisely they can bring someone up too.

Think about this "What Would Jesus Do?"

I know thats a funny thought and your probably picturing Jesus on faceook now, but the point is, Jesus wouldnt say things that hurt other people and you, being a child of God, shouldnt either.

I hope the people on my faccebook are given hope through everything I post.

Thanks for reading! :)

Heart Breaks

I know a lot of my friends are going through some heart break right now and I just felt like I should blog about it. Last week my older brother spoke at my youth group about love. It was one of the most amazing things I've ever heard. It moved a lot of people and I hope this does the same thing.
   I'm 15, I have never had my heart broken before but I can imagine how it would feel like. My heart aches as my friends tell me these stories of people who used to care just...not caring any more. One of the things to help is to focus on God. That's pretty much the solution for everything. But it really does work. An old bible study teacher of mine once said "Humans were made with this desire that we sometimes mistake it as a longing to be loved by a boy (or if your a guy, then for girls.) but it's really a longing for God." We were made with a thirst for God and as humans we try to satisfy that thirst with what the world has to offer. But God is the only one who can fill that void within us.
   Now, this doesn't mean it isn't hard when we get hurt. But you have to know that God has a plan. He has plans for the big things and the silly little things. He is in control. Always and forever.
   If your a teenager going through heart break remember this: Your a teenager. It's not the end of the world. It may seem like it is right now, but it's not. This hardship your dealing with right now is only going to make your stronger. So see what you can learn from it. God promised He would never give you more then you can handle. It's the hard times when we learn to rely on God the most.
   I wish I could write this big long blog that would make you cry and take away all your problems. Maybe next time. I wish I knew exactly what people were going through with break ups and all that but I don't. I know trusting God is soooo much easier said then done, but hang in there. God will be with you...always.

Kony 2012: A New Campaign

Well I tried to avoid it but it turns out I have to bring back this topic because it obviously didn't get through the first time.
   Honestly, who doesn't know about the whole Kony 2012 thing? Well a man from some other country did some pretty horrible things and now everyone's getting together to throw this evil man in prison. Sounds like a just cause right? He did horrible things to children and ruined many lives, so he deserves to rot in prison or something right? This is just me and I have really strong opinions and I when I talk about them I make sure to get my message across. There's just something about this campaign that doesn't feel right.
   I say this all the time and I'm gonna say it again. YOUR A SINNER TOO! Just like Kony. So instead of starting a campaign to throw this guy in prison ("Because he deserves it") we start a new campaign. One to pray for him. To pray that he sees God. He may see God when he's sitting in jail, or maybe God will open his eyes out of nowhere. But pray for him.
   I've sinned. I've yelled and out lashed out of anger. Do you look at me any different? How do you know whats happened to Kony? What's led him to his make these decisions? Now, I know that I can't go off defending all the killers and hoping they all go free. But pray for them. That's all I'm asking of you. Because your 1 minute prayer could make all the difference. That's all it takes. 1 minute.
   God has placed people on my heart. Cassey Anthony was another. To this day I still think about what she's been through. I pray for her consistently. God has given me a heart for these people. So maybe it's time to soften yours too.
   So right now. Pray For Kony.

A Story To Give Hope To The Homeless Part 2

This blog is way overdue and it's going to be written differently but I hope you enjoy it!

April 1rst 2010

I was soaking wet. I held the towel close to me. I could feel the cool breeze hitting my skin and it sent a shiver up my spine. As I enjoyed my ice cream I soaked in the moment. Tomorrow this would all be gone. I would be changing my way of life. Again. So I let it all in. Every little thing about it. Here I was standing with my bare feet on the gravel driveway to a place I now called my home though it wouldn't be much longer. I had spent the day being crazy with people I had begun to consider my family. We had done crazy things. We had sprayed each other with water and jumped on the trampoline with the sprinkler while music was blaring. I couldn't explain the sensation it gave me. It took my worries away.

In my mind I re-winded to 4 days ago. I stood in the hallway. I kissed my parents goodbye and waved to my family. My sister stood somewhere around me but my mind was in such a blur that I don't really remember what she was doing. I had made a silent promise with myself. I wouldn't cry when my family moved. Not here, not with these people around. Maybe tonight when I was curled up in my bed and alone. But not now. But as I said goodbye I realized I couldn't say "I'll see you tomorrow!" I had no idea when I would see them again. I didn't even know where they would be sleeping that night. As the door shut I felt my eyes begin to water. No. But when I turned around and saw her standing there with her arms wide open I couldn't do it anymore. Her eyes said all the things that her words couldn't.

"It's ok. You can cry. I understand."

So I cried. She gave me a hug. Me, this 13 year old girl was crying in the arms of a 9 year old.

Now hear I stood. Happy, at home. I had called my parents so many times since they had left 4 days ago. They were temporarily staying at a friends house and were ok. That made me feel so much better having heard their voices on the phone.

Soon I was dressed and dry again. I felt happy and refreshed. So much had happened. I walked up the stairs and turned into the living room...they were sitting on my couch. The new family that was to take in me and Dayle. Don't get me wrong, I was happy to see them. But I felt overwhelmed. I took a deep breath. They smiled at me. It was a girl and her mother. I had known them my whole life, me and the girl were close friends. She also had a brother and a father at home. They stayed for a moment to talk and then everyone helped me and my sister get our stuff into the car.

I said my goodbyes. I felt dizzy. This had to be a dream. But I knew it wasn't. I gave the 9 year old a hug and handed her an envelope with letters written to each member of her family.

"Read them once I leave." I said.

So I got in the van and we drove off. It was that moment that I realized I hated moving. Little did I know that I would have to face many more sorrowful goodbyes. As we drove away the little girl chased us down. She ran near my window until we were off the block and she stopped and waved.....Then she was gone.

That day was a game changer. It led to a crazy month. I loved it though. We did so many funny things. During the month of April we did many crazy things. Like had lunch at a cemetery, went to Navy Pier at 1o o'clock at night, made a radio show, and failed at double dutch. If I could go back there would only be one thing I would change. My attitude. It was hard adjusting to a new way of life. Especially one without my parents. It was my first time living without them. I never thought of how the family I was living with felt. The one girl only had a brother so she was thrilled to get "two sisters." To this day we refer to each other as sister. (It's only funny because the three of us are a blonde, a brunette, and a redhead.)

It was really hard for me. I got very over protective of my sister and felt that I had to stand up for her. That usually resulted in arguments. But the most amazing thing about that month is it didn't break our friendship. It made us stronger. I was positive the girl I lived with was going to hate me after this. But whenever we talk about it, she seems to forget all the bad things. Like they never happened. I could never thank her enough for that. Because I was such a brat then. But God had a plan. In all my ignorance and pride God still loved me. And so did that family.

Teenage Drama

I know I kind of touched this subject in a later blog but I feel like it needs to be addressed again. I'm a freshman in high school and so far I've managed to avoid the drama that most teens deal with. Sure I've gotten into small fights with my friends, but nothing to the point of wanting to un-friend them in Facebook. (haha, sorry. I had to make a joke there.) You may be thinking right now "Wow Faith! How do you do it?" Well I'll tell you about how I avoid drama and how I would deal to drama if I were to come across it. (Which is bound to happen sooner or later.)
1. It's not about the other person and the times they wronged you. God loves us unconditionally. He commands us to love everyone, ESPECIALLY our enemies! So drop the whole "Oh well they did so and so to me and I got really hurt by blah blah blah so it's all their fault!" No. Love. Try to see the other persons perspective.
2. Always be positive! Think positive and act positive. Emotions are contagious! So by being happy your mood may help someone else.
3. My saying at the moment is "Life goes on.: It's true. It's not the end of the world. Your not going to die because someone made a nasty Tweet about you. So stay calm and know that God has a plan, even for all the stupid little fights.
4. Pick your battles! Not everything is worth fighting about! Do you really want to watch a certain movie SO badly that it's worth getting into a big fight over? No. Some times you need to put yourself aside and put someone else first. It also honors God.
5. Part of friendships is working through hard trails. If friendships were easy then we would never grow. When we get into fights with our friends it can help us learn to set aside our problems and learn to love!
Seriously, people need to stop worrying about these silly little things of earth that aren't going to mean anything when we're with God. You can't control other people but you can control how you respond. Life is way to short to be freaking out over every time someone talks behind your back. I hope you've learned something from this. Thanks for reading!