My...Testimony?

"My Testimony" feels like such a...generic title...so I didn't really want to use it, but...well...as you can see, I did.  If you're wondering...I guess this will pretty much be telling about my journey to/through salvation.
I grew up in a single parent Christian home, with a mother that worked her butt off to make sure I had everything I needed, and a good deal of what I wanted (I still don't have a giraffe, but that's okay, I'm not dead yet).  I've been going to church since before I was born, and don't know a time when I didn't know the name "Jesus", and not as a cuss word.
When I was little, I knew that you were supposed to ask Jesus into your heart, so when I was probably about three or four, I knelt down at my little toy box and prayed that God would save me, and as far as I was concerned, that was that.
Since I was homeschooled, reading my Bible was part of my curriculum, but I didn't really pray a lot, unless I needed something.  I'm not sure that I was really old enough to understand the gravity of salvation, and had only prayed at my toy box because that's what I knew I was supposed to do.
The denomination that I grew up attending is a very legalistic denomination.  Women are expected to wear skirts below their knees, their hair up in a bun, or other similar updo, the legs should always be covered, even if it's only by panty-hose.  No make up.  No jewelry.  Sleeves below the elbows are best.  Closed toe shoes are also the best.
Granted, some of the best people and the greatest prayer warriors I know come from that denomination, yet at the same time, some of the worst "Christians" I've ever met have come from that denomination.  I've been witness to several of them bashing Pokemon, without actually learning anything about it, outside of what articles they find that already coincide with their own thinking (totally other rant).  I've also been given dirty looks just for wearing my TARDIS dress...so....  However, like I said before, also some of the best people I've ever met have attended churches in that denomination.
When I was younger, I was pretty strong in my faith, I think.  I wasn't always doubting.  But the older I got, the more I questioned, which, I suppose is natural enough.
As I've mentioned before, my dad has never been around, and I honestly doubt that he wanted or loved me a lot of the time.  I could be wrong, but...who knows.  If my earthly father wasn't around and didn't want or love me, why on earth would my HEAVENLY father, who knows better want or love me?
I am a bit of a people pleaser.  I like to make people happy.  I hate it when people are mad or upset with me.  As such, I'm always worried about whether or not people are mad at me, and yes, I've often been terrified of not being good enough for God, despite this being a salvation through faith, rather than works.  I knew that works went along with faith, and I was always worried I wasn't doing enough.
I believe it was...two...Christmases ago, one of my uncles had somehow found some people on YouTube, who came up with reasons why modern Christians should be following the Old Testament laws as well.  That was the catalyst.
I struggled enough before.  How could I do anything now?  I was overwhelmed.  I didn't know all the laws...I still don't.  I love bacon!  Which, I mean, of course, bacon is nothing compared to the grand scheme of things...but...still...bacon.  Of course, that wasn't the biggest thing, it was just...I was paralyzed.  Spiritually paralyzed.
I struggled between trying hard to follow the Old Testament laws, and just giving up.  Then roughly a year later...I say roughly, because I honestly can't remember...I got a boyfriend.  That's great, right?  Not really.  It became an abusive relationship, and while I knew that God wanted us to break up, and I knew I needed out, but again, I felt paralyzed, and I had no idea how to get out...I just didn't.
I didn't read my Bible on a regular basis (and was only able to get back into it because of Bible reading plans on my Bible app), I rarely prayed...I just...I didn't know anymore.
I was also going to a Christian school at the time, and it wasn't good for me.  I was working at the daycare just down the street, and my hours had been cut to oblivion after the director I first started working under retired.  I went from working from out of school to close every night to working one night...if I were lucky.
One day I just...I guess I just knew.  I had given up and there was no point in trying.  I think it was around April.  I couldn't go to anyone for help.  I didn't even know how to formulate what was wrong and put it into words.
Sometime during that, I also felt like it was okay to leave that school.  Because of issues with administration Doug, my stepdad, had been trying to get me to quit and go to the public school down the street for half of forever, but each time I felt like I needed to stay.  So I stayed.  But I felt like I could leave now, and be okay.  So I did.
Of course, like I mentioned in previous blog posts, the principal kept trying to get me to stay...and boy am I glad I didn't.  He told me that he wanted me to graduate from the right school...and I'm very glad that he felt that way, and I'm sure he prayed that I would graduate from the right school (thinking it was his, undoubtably) and I can tell you now...I DID!!!
Then my boyfriend broke up with me right before a church camp we were both going to.  I went until Thursday night without breaking down and crying...but then I just broke down.  Jacob was and is what held me together during that entire thing.
This entire time, I didn't feel like God would want me back or love me or anything like that, but I did try some.  I kind of read the Bible every once in awhile, not as regularly (every night) as I once had...but...still.  I remember going to camp meeting and being so angry when someone told about Aaron and...someone else holding up Moses' arms when he couldn't anymore...because the times when I cried out for help against my depression I was always met with a blow off answer "Just trust Jesus", and I felt like no one was actually going to do something to help me.
August 6, 2015--Thursday
Exodus 17:8-13.  These people physically aided their comrade."
I wrote that very angrily.
I was scared and nervous to start at my new school, because I didn't know anyone.  In art class, there was a boy named Alex.  I was drawn to him and initially thought I might have a crush on him, because you know, when you're drawn to someone, that's usually why.
He was quiet, but seemed kind.  One day during a free period during choir, Alex, a guy named Dakota, and myself were talking about churches, and Alex mentioned where he went to church.  My family and I had tried to go once, but no one was there, and I told him that.  He couldn't figure out why, but oh well.
Then came the musical.  Oh, I loved that musical...I still love it, to be honest with you.  Kinda miss it....  Alex was playing in the band pit...and it was near the last weeks of practicing.  I was really irritated, because practice was on a Sunday, and on Sunday nights we nearly always went to my grandparents'...I had put down on the conflicts sheet that I couldn't do practice on Sundays, and here we were having a practice on Sundays.
Mom and Doug had gone to one church that had church on Sunday night, and once practice was over, I thought, "Hmm, I could go to Alex's church."  So I went.  I had a longer conversation with his dad that night, than I had had with Alex the entire time I had classes with him.  Alex and I have since had longer conversations, including some where I have thrown things at him (he deserved it).
I liked the people there, so as soon as the musical was over, I started going to their church on Wednesday nights.  The longer I went, the more I wanted to start going on Sundays too...but I felt held back by the other church I'd been attending with my family.  But we wound up switching churches, and they went to one church and I now go to this church, and have been for almost a year now.
In Wednesday church one night, a question was asked about if you died right now, would you go to heaven, and Josh (the leader) looked at me and asked and I looked him point blank in the eye and said, "I don't know."  He was shocked, because, as he says, I know my Bible well.  Which, I don't know it perfectly or anything, but I do have an odd memory for little tidbits of things, which makes debates and arguments quite nice.
I don't remember quite what all transpired, but we talked a lot, and Josh asked me to come over to his house to talk with him and his wife, and I kind of got hung up on the whole baptism thing.  I covered a lot of that in my post about my baptism.  The church I had attended when I was young didn't do baptism...or communion.
I decided to get baptized.  And...well, you can find all that here.
And...I don't know...some people say that you don't have to be baptized to be saved...and maybe you don't, I guess that that's something you'll have to work out yourself with fear and trembling, but I've never felt so confident in my salvation than I have the past six months.
Doug's even said that he's noticed a change in me in the past six months.  I mean, I'm still me...and I guess that's something that I and others need to realize.  You change...but you don't change.  You still have the same interests...you're just more aware of when your interests don't align with God's...and you can like what you liked before you were saved...but still be a Christian (with some exceptions).
And I'm sure I've mentioned before about actually understanding God's love more now, in my relationship with Jacob.  We have the most intimate relationship I have ever been in...even in my friendships.  I hold very very little back from him.  I can talk about anything with him.
Ever since camp meeting this August...I guess this month...I've kind of felt like I should share my testimony on my blog, so here it is, in its...novel like...glory?
Seriously, if you guys keep up with my insanely long blog posts, you're awesome.
~Katie

I Got Irritated Again.

Okay, so I am very tired of seeing people that I respect do things that make me lose a bit of respect for them...especially when they take what one person writes in an article, and decides that it's the truth...because it already fits their own idea.

Yes, this involves Pokemon again.

Someone from one of my churches posted this article saying "for your info".  For one, this is a rather outdated post!  There are a TON more pokemon and pokemon types now.  For two...  *groans*  it has picked something that it already deems as "evil" and is looking for ways to support its agenda.  You can do that with anything.  Literally anything.  Wanna know how I know?  Well, I took one of my favorite book series of all times (The Chronicles of Narnia), and picked apart the first CHRONOLOGICAL book.  By that, I mean The Magician's Nephew.  Again, I said chronological, not first written.  Oh, it's satanic and occultic!

This is what I said:

"By this logic, The Chronicles of Narnia, a book series written by C.S. Lewis, and a movie series made by Disney (not as good as the books) is evil and should not be read.

Narnia is a series revolving mainly around four siblings, Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy, their cousin Eustace and his friend Jill, and a professor named Digory, and his friend Polly.

In the first chronological book, The Magician's Nephew, it starts off right away with a boy who has a very off the wall uncle. His uncle has "magic" rings (oh no, the occult), that can transport a person from realm to realm. He forces Digory and Polly (whom Digory finds while crawling through the attic, if I remember, something else children should not be encouraged to do) to wear these rings and go to a different world.

They go to this world, and there's a bell there, when they ring it all these stone people come to life. This must be magic. Again, the occult, obviously.

I recall that there was a forest, with different puddles, and basically, the puddles transport to and from these places. They go into another puddle and they're transported to a new "world" that is just being made, by a singing lion.

The lion sings and stuff happens. Talking animals and everything. Okay, that's so not cool, that's obviously occultish magic and will give children the idea that God isn't actually God, but some singing lion, especially as the author of these books never once mentions God in this series.

Later on, when Digory and Polly are back in England, they've accidentally taken some evil witch (yes, witch, okay, they aren't even trying to hide that she's a witch, obviously involved in the occult!) with them. She breaks a lamppost and when they get back to this new "world" which has been named Narnia, she throws it into the ground and it grows into a regular sized lamppost, complete with a lamp with fire in it and everything. Again, occultic magic.

I don't fully remember the entire book, as I haven't read it in a long time, but I do remember that a cab driver and his horse Strawberry are brought to Narnia as well. Aslan wants him to stay and he even gets the man's wife there as well! That's so wrong! Just displacing a person from where they've grown.

Digory, the book's main protagonist even steals an apple to "heal his ailing mother", as if a "magical" apple can do that! Then his mother is miraculously healed. Okay, what? Obviously occultic stuff right there.

Oh and what's worse? He plants the remains of that apple and if I remember correctly, the tree grew overnight. That doesn't happen. That is not something we want our kids to think can happen.

Later, he cuts the tree down and builds a wardrobe out of it, which later, in the book The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, transports the four siblings mentioned before to Narnia.

There are seven books in this series, and I could pick them all apart for you like this man does, to prove why they are leading children into the occult and that they should not be read or partaken in at all, but that would take up too much room here.

Other books basically embrace the idea that a lion (Aslan) can save people from dying, or transport people do different lands or his "kingdom". He died in one of the books and was brought back to life. I don't see how anyone could allow their child to read these books or watch the movies.

In The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (witch is in the title, why would anyone think that that's appropriate?) there is a witch (big shocker) who turns the entire country into ice using her sorcery...and good Christian people let their children read these books and watch these movies.

And the worst part of this entire thing is that there are Christians all over the world who believe that The Chronicles of Narnia is something good for their children! This author also wrote a book called The Screwtape letters, targeted at adults, where a demon is trying to control a man, and ultimately end him in hell. I mean, that's satanic right there! Why on earth would anyone want to read a book that all but romanticizes satanic things like that?

.

.

.

Do you see how absurd that is? Because...um...that article used the exact same logic I did. ANYTHING, literally ANYTHING could lead a person to the occult. I've been watching Pokemon, learning about Pokemon, even playing some Pokemon games...and...I'm probably further away from the occult than I have ever been. Not because of the movies/books/games I partake in, but because of my relationship with Jesus Christ and God.

Again ANYTHING could be found to be Satanic or Occultic....

And what really bothers me is people just reading articles like this and believing them. They don't even try to go out and learn about it other than people who already share the same opinion. Just because someone says it's true, doesn't mean it actually is. I mean, seriously, go look at all the articles and websites promoting abortion!

Oh, and about the evolutions they're talking about...it's basically growing up. Most pokemon have three stages and it's basically baby>teen>adult.

ACTUALLY, one of the pokemon is a caterpillar called caterpie. He evolves into a butterfly. He goes from Caterpie the catterpillar, to Metapod the cocoon, to Butterfree (I think I spelled that right) the butterfly. It just goes through the stages of metamorphosis."

So...yeah.  Like I said there...you can find the occult in anything if you want to.  You can find the evil in anything if you want to.  And the thing is, maybe you have a personal conviction against something.  I know a woman who has a personal conviction against chewing gum.  BUT she doesn't tell others they can't chew gum, and she even keeps gum in her purse for others if they want some.

If it's YOUR personal conviction, don't force it on OTHERS.

Annoyed, ranting human out,

~Katie

The Way to be Saved (Cartoon Jesus)

(Sorry for the weird way it's shown here...I copy pasted it from something I already shared on Facebook)

"Share me." Says cartoon Jesus in the little meme.
"Oh no, keep scrolling, that means you pick me." Cartoon Satan laughs.
Cartoon me is in between them, looking scared. Which should I pick? Is it betraying Jesus not to press the little share button? It's not that hard to do and then, whew, I've told all of my Facebook friends that I pick Jesus!
My Facebook friends have no idea that I pick Jesus if I don't share that. Not even if I just shared my favorite Bible verse two minutes ago, or told everyone that God answered my prayer.
My Facebook friends don't know that I'm a Christian if I don't share that. Not even if I was sitting in church next to them yesterday. Not even if they came to me with a prayer request and I prayed for them.
My Facebook friends haven't the slightest idea that I serve God if I don't share that. Not even if I show them His love.
Or, maybe I'm not a Christian.
My Facebook friends have no idea that I don't pick Jesus, as long as I share that. Not even if I cussed at the slow driver who had no idea where they were. Not even if I go along with bullying that already bullied enough girl.
My Facebook friends don't know that I'm not a Christian if I share that. Not even if just three seconds ago I posted on my Facebook something about how God doesn't exist.
My Facebook friends haven't the slightest idea that I don't serve God, if I share that. Not even if I cheat on my test with no remorse. Not even if I continually talk about people behind their backs.

As long as I share that little cartoon...I'm a Christian. It doesn't matter how I live. It doesn't matter what I do. All I have to do is share that little cartoon.
After all, in the KSV (Katie Standard Version), in Heresy 2:6 it says "Whosoever shareth the cartoon Jesus shall be saved."
And over in the book of Falsehood, chapter nine, it says, "They who share not the cartoon Jesus choose in their hearts, not only cartoon Satan, but the true Satan. These too shall have their place in the Lake of Fire."
And if you go on to the Song of Deception, chapter 6, verse 8, it says, "For God so loved the world that he gave the cartoon Jesus that whosever shareth on Facebook shall not perish, but have everlasting life."
And later on in the chapter, verse 19, Jesus says, "I and cartoon Jesus are one."
So. Obviously the way to be saved and to prove to the world that I am saved is to share this cartoon. And all along, I thought that the way to be saved was to "believe on the Lord Jesus Christ" and to prove to the world that I am saved was to "love one another as [Jesus] loved [me]."

Church vs. Gym

I'm sure we've all (well...a lot of us) seen this picture on Facebook before:

I have issues with this.
When you go to church and are greeted by a nice couple, who says that they're Christians, the husband is a deacon, the wife is a Sunday school teacher, you're impressed!  But then on Tuesday, you see the husband cussing out a kid for walking across the yard and the wife screaming at the husband telling him to quit yelling at the kid, you're kind of going to be a bit skeptical on the Christian thing....
Or say if you told the couple something in confidence, then you heard them gossiping about it to their neighbor?  Would you believe them to be Christians?  No.  That is called a hypocrite.
However, if you go to the gym and see a man or a woman who has a little extra weight and ask them if they believe themselves to be in shape...the answer will most likely be "no.".  You could even ask someone who looks like they're in shape if they're in shape and because they know themselves and their body, they could also answer with a "no.", simply because they know that they were in shape and now aren't so much.
What's the difference?  One claims to be something that they aren't and the other knows what they are and owns up to it.  Am I saying that not going to church and using hypocrites as an example is a good thing?  Uh...no, not really.  For the majority of churches, there will always be hypocrites...but there will also be good, true Christians.  Sometimes you need to change churches and that is okay...so long as it's cleared by God.

~Katie

To My Friend, Mike

I know I already made a blog post today, but then I went to my friend, Mike's, blog and read one of his posts.  I had a comment all typed up and it wound up being rather long, so I asked if he would mind me sharing his post, with my reply on my blog and he said that that was fine....

Mike's Blog Post

And here is my reply:

Sometimes crying shows strength. The man is supposed to be the example for the woman. If her man always holds back his tears and refuses to let them show, she may feel as though she needs to do the same.
Throughout the Bible, men have cried…and not just because of deaths. Jacob cried when he was reunited with his son, I believe Jacob and Esau cried when they saw each other and were making peace, the father of the prodigal son cried when he saw his son…so much crying…all by men… If God didn’t want people (male and female) to cry, he wouldn’t have made people designed to cry.
When a person is born…usually, the first thing they do after taking a breath, is cry. When you fall down, you cry. When you laugh too hard, you cry. When you suffer a painful break up, you cry. When you grow older, when you’re extremely happy, you cry. If you’re moved emotionally at all, you cry. Crying is good and healthy and something that is perfectly okay for men, women, boys, girls, babies, teens, preteens, and any other humans I may have left out to do.
God KEEPS your tears. He keeps them. In a bottle…and in a book. Psalm 56:8– “Thou tellest my wanderings: put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book?” That wasn’t just for the writer of that psalm…that was for everyone. Including men. Which includes you.
And besides all of THAT, there are plenty of healthy reasons to cry. When you cry, it releases proteins that can cause bad moods or health issues…and I know what I’m talking about, I wrote a whole essay on it my Sophomore year of highschool. If you don’t want to cry around people, that’s fine and completely understandable…but don’t force yourself not to cry or feel weak for doing so…because it’s fine. Biblically and…professionally? No, that’s not the word I mean, but you understand what I mean, I hope.
I’m very much a hypocrite for saying this, because I force myself not to cry a lot of the time…I first remember doing that when I was four…so it’s something I need to remember too. Crying is a-okay.

~Katie

Backwards Thinking

I am a Christian.  I am going to Heaven.  God loves me no matter what.  Considering the last statement I just made, I can therefore make this statement:  because God loves me no matter what, it doesn't matter what I do to others, especially people who do not claim to have the love of God surrounding them.
I am not a Christian.  Honestly, I have no idea where I'm going.  Maybe just in the ground, but maybe Hell if Christians are right.  Considering the way I am treated by Christians, God is an unfeeling being who cares not for my feelings.  Considering the last statement I made, I can therefore make this statement:  Because there is either not a God or an unfeeling God who doesn't care, I can do whatever I want and there will never be any negative consequences.
I am a Christian.  I am going to Heaven.  God loves me no matter what.  The Bible tells me to love others and do unto them whatever I want them to do to me.  This includes people that may or may not treat me right.  Because of the last two statements, I can make another statement that would be just as true:  God wants me to love others.  This includes those who do not claim to have the love of God surrounding them.
I am not a Christian.  I am either going to Hell or just in the ground after I die.  Considering the way I am treated by Christians, and the things I've heard of in the Bible, the people who claim to be Christians may or may not be true Christians.
If God is love and God commands his people to be love, why would his people ever ever treat other people, especially those who do not have Jesus in their life, like they're worth less than nothing?  Why would anyone who claims to be a Christian abuse, misuse, or bully another human, without thinking about the feelings of the person they are hurting?  And why do no adults try to help?  Especially the adults who claim to be Christians?
It's called bullying.  Whether the person being bullied says that it's bullying or not, God has laid out something to help people understand better what they should and shouldn't do to others.  In one very simple verse.  Luke 6:31.

And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.  KJV

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you NIV

Here is a simple rule of thumb for behavior:  Ask yourself what you want people to do for you; then grab the initiative and do it for them!  The Message 

Treat others as you want them to treat you. The Living Bible

And as you desire that men should do to you, do to them likewise.  Jubilee Bible.

Need more be listed?  Five different translations, yet they all pass along the same message.  If you are the Christian, you are the example.  If the world sees you acting like the world, they will think that you are no different from them.  They will think that there is no reason for them to become Christians...because Christians are no different.  And when they think they way it was shown in the first paragraph...they are 100% correct.

~Katie :|

Katie Likes to Rant

You think that God gets upset and hurt, maybe even mad at the people who dress slutty, the people who cut themselves, who sometimes kill themselves.  Why would he get mad at them?  Because, he made them.  He very carefully formed them in the womb.  The Bible says that he KNIT them in the womb.  Now, I don't know much about knitting, but I know that crocheting is similar and I know some about that.  You don't accidentally crochet something.  You decide what you want to crochet.  You carefully pick the colors you think are prettiest.  You also pick a pattern.  When God knits/crochets someone, he picks the pattern.  The pattern says what your personality will be.  It says whether you're gonna be outgoing or shy.  When He decides what he's going to crochet, he decides what you're gonna look like, whether you're gonna be a guy or girl.  And the colors?  They determine your eye color, your hair color, your skin color.  He never makes a mistake when he does this, because He's God, he can't make mistakes.  Sometimes he chooses to make some people more special than others.  He chooses some people to show others that people can be extremely different and still be awesome.  He does this very, very carefully.
Now, when someone, a human, crochets or knits something, or makes something out of anything, they want it to stay pretty.  They don't want it to fall into a mud puddle, or get run over by a train.  So, obviously, God, the master crafter, wouldn't want his beautiful crocheted creations to get dirty or ruined.  Yet there they go dirtying themselves, ruining themselves.  Degrading themselves, making themselves out to be worth nothing.  Of course he would be upset.
But, also, like any other crafter knows, people don't always like what you make.  Sometimes they throw what you make away.  Or they rip it up.  Or burn it.  And that, that hurts you worse.  So think about how God feels, when other people look at the people HE made, and make fun of them, hurt them...make them feel like cutting, or killing themselves.  How do you think God feels when other people, people he made, ignore other people he made, to make them beg for attention by dressing slutty or acting up?  I bet he hates that.  I can't speak for God, for one very special reason...I'm not God...but I think that he probably hates it worse when people he made, make fun of other people he made, and makes them want to die.  Makes them feel like nothing.
Now, I'm not saying that people aren't to blame for their own actions....I'm just saying that it's wrong to look at people and say that they're wrong because of this, or God hates them because of that...  They never once think that they're talking about another person that GOD made very carefully.  Carefully just like them.  Take Miley Cyrus for example.  She dances nearly naked....  But God still made her very carefully.  Is she making God happy?  No.  But neither is anyone else when they're sitting there saying things like, "Wow, they're an idiot.  They're a failure."  I have a classmate that I heard say, within the past two weeks, "Wow, I wish Miley Cyrus would just overdose already!"  Wow.  No, I'm not saying that I've always been completely innocent of that.  I haven't.  And I'm also not saying that people doing things like that are making God very happy...but people who talk smack about them because of what they're doing aren't making God very happy either.
~Katie >.<

*sighs*

Hey y'all.  Sorry for not posting more often...but I'm posting now.
I was really disappointed when a day or two ago I saw on a website that I love--a Christian website--the writers basically saying that wearing a bikini all just depends on how the girl feels about it.  Well...no...that's not exactly how it goes.  This is a Christian website.  A Christian website where girls asked the question wanting the Biblical answer....  This was the first answer:

I think it definitely depends on your age, your style and whom you are around. If you are with some close friends and go to a spa or to a private pool with family, a bikini could be fine. If you know you are going to be around a lot of boys and it might make them stumble, then you might want to wear a cover-up, a wrap skirt or a tankini.

For one thing, a lot of my close friends...at least half, possibly more...are guys.  Actually, one of my guy friends I talk to more often than I do to my friends that are girls.  I'm not even joking.  So, as long as you're close friends with the guys, it's alright to wear nothing but your underwear to go swimming around him.  Makes perfect sense.  The next thing is with family.  Even in the Bible, family was not supposed to look at each others' nakedness.  (Leviticus 18:13-15)   And besides that, in order to not uncover their nakedness, the priests  had to wear underwear that went from their waist to their thigh.  (Exodus 28:42)  A bikini doesn't come close to covering that.
Another thing that the person who wrote the article said was this:

If you wear a two-piece I don’t believe you should be judged

If by two piece she's referring to bikinis, rather than tankinis or something else that's like shorts and a shirt of some kind... *shakes head*  No, they should not be judged...but...they should be told the truth in love.  That kind of stuff is stated in the Timothys, possibly Romans...Corinthians...those books.  About telling the truth in love.
A bikini swimsuit covers the same as a bra and panties...and if a guy walked in on a girl wearing her underwear, she'd freak...BUT if it was a swimsuit...it'd be fine.
One of the things that was brought up in the comments on this website was about the whole causing guys to lust thing....  Here's one of the comments.

Maybe we should be teaching boys to respect what’s inside the bodies they seem to appreciate so much. Instead of putting the responsibility to keep boys pure on girls, we should hold boys accountable. There is nothing wrong with bikinis. There is nothing wrong with one pieces. That is a decision of personal preference. It is, however, wrong to teach girls that there is something dirty about the female body, and by even writing this article, that is what we are perpetuating. Stop sexualizing women and holding them responsible for the actions and thoughts of boys. We are trying to fix a problem at the wrong end. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for modesty, but what anyone wears, modest or otherwise, should not be judged or used as a segway into the “have you heard about Jesus” conversation. God loves everyone regardless of how they dress, and so should we.

Yes, boys should be taught to respect what's inside the bodies, however, when guys see things like that, they start doing this thing called objectifying....  Yes, boys should be held responsible...Is the guy starring or attempting to avert his eyes?  Is he making sure that he looks at her face no matter what or letting himself look all over her?  I'm not a guy, but things like that can be hard for guys...or so I've heard.  In a way your swim suit is a matter of personal preference, but if your preference is something that you know can cause yourself to be a stumbling block, you need a new preference.  There was nothing mentioned in the article about the female body being dirty.  Nothing is mentioned here about the female body being dirty.  The female body is--not to sound weird, which I am going to anyway--beautiful!  But, it's not for every guy at the pool to see!  It's to be saved for your husband.  As for the sexualizing of women...we sexualize them when we put our three year old little girls in bikinis.  Yes, God loves everyone regardless of how they dress, but each person is held responsible for the knowledge you have.  If you have the knowledge that wearing a bikini causes your brothers in Christ lust after you or objectify you, you shouldn't wear it.
I'm not saying guys don't need to watch themselves, because they do...I'm just saying that girls need to do their work on their side too.
I'm going to add a video about the history of swimsuits, bikinis are indeed mentioned.  I would greatly appreciate it if you watched it.  It would help with the understanding of all this.  Hopefully.
Jessica Rey - The Evolution of the Swimsuit
No model would even wear a bikini, the inventor of them had to hire a STRIPPER to model it for him....  Watch the entire video.  Just watch it.  She says it so much better than me.
~Katie :)
P.S.  I got a kitten.
P.P.S.  Watch the entire thing.  WATCH IT!

Thoughts

I've been thinking.  And do you know what I've realized?  At my school--a private CHRISTIAN school, there are so many insecure people.  I know of at least three.  And there's bullies too.  I don't know if some of the bullies even realize they're bullies.  And there's also some people who are perfectly nice, but when they're put together with one of their friends, they can be mean.  Then there are people that I am pretty sure are some type of strange bipolar, because sometimes they can be super mean, and other times they can be really nice.  And there's one person at our school that everyone thinks is perfectly fine, but he's really an arrogant, stuck up, know it all, who is really a jerk.  Especially to his sister, who can be really nice and sweet.  She isn't always, and yes, she can get somewhat annoying at times, but she's not the ugly, weird, brat that he says she is.
He yells at her to shut up, and acts like he knows the answers to everything, all the time.  You know what, I need to get off of the topic about him, because if I don't, I'll get mad, and if I get mad, I'll really start to rant, and if I start to rant, I'll get off topic, and if I get off topic I can't make a point, and if I can't make a point, y'all won't know what's going on inside my brain, and if y'all don't know what's going on inside my brain, my blog will be useless, and if my blog is useless, I have no business having a blog, and if I have no business having a blog, I'll just get rid of it, and if I just get rid of it, I'll have no outlet for my rants and stuff like that, and if I have no outlet for my rants and stuff like that I'll explode.
Now, where was I?  Oh yes, insecure people, and bullies.  They don't always bully, and sometimes it looks like teasing.  But there's a difference between bullying, and teasing.  Bullying hurts, and teasing merely annoys.  Maybe they don't mean to bully, maybe they think they're teasing...but a lot of that kind of teasing can be painful.
Having a classmate call you a cross-dresser, just because you're a tomboyish girl, hurts.  Especially when you don't know if they're teasing, or really do want to make you insecure.
Remember what kind of school I go to?  Oh yes...a Christian school.
A Christian school where people make gay jokes, and perverted jokes, and purposely mispronounce words to make them sound dirty, and shove other classmates into desks because they got super annoyed.
Oh wait...that last one was me...um...well...and I did apologize, and I think he forgave me.  I'm pretty sure he forgave me.  We're good friends.
And I have a friend there, who a guy won't talk to anymore, simply because people at that school teased them mercilessly, and said that she liked him...when she didn't.  And it's happening again, with another guy.
And I get teased constantly, both among my family, and at school about guys.  My family is bound and determined I'm going to marry one of my guy friends, and everyone at school is bound and determined that I am madly in love with another one of my guy friends.
Well, guess what...I'm not.  And I'm not too sure I'm even gonna get married, or have kids.  Besides, I was told by someone that they can see me as a single lady.  I'm too independent anyway.  And argumentative, and opinionated....
Anyway, I just wanted to point out that just because "Bible" is tacked onto something doesn't make it Christian, and I wanted to point out that my school is slightly messed up sometimes.
OH!  And a guy who quit coming to our school came back to visit, and he looks WAY different.  He bleached his hair, and apparently he dyed his eyebrows, and eyelashes, and he wore a stocking cap IN SEPTEMBER, and he had super skinny jeans, and he looked WAY different.  WAY different.  If I don't stop saying that, that's all I will say, because he looks WAY different.
I really need a personal massage therapist....
I'm going to a Renaissance Festival on Saturday!!!  Okay, goodbye.
~Katie :)

One Million Dollars

I know, strange title, get over it.
So...today I was talking to a guy who was Catholic, and I asked what was up with purgatory.  Honestly I do not get the point of purgatory.  So, he said that it was a place to wait, and to get a second chance.  And possibly get prayed into heaven.  I still honestly don't see the point.  Everyone would go to heaven if purgatory existed, because to be perfectly honest with you, everyone, even Hitler, has people who would pray hard enough for them to get into heaven.
Yeah, I don't think God would allow such evil in his heaven.
So, I thought of this story, which isn't really a story, it's an illustration, but whatevs, with salvation being a free gift from God, ect., and if I tweaked it a little bit, I came up with this;
If I offered you a million dollars, it would be a free gift, and I would just be giving it to you right?  Well, God offers salvation as a free gift for you to accept or decline.  If you didn't accept the million dollars, you 1. wouldn't have a million dollars, and 2. I would keep trying to give it to you.  If you don't accept God's gift, you 1. Don't have salvation, which is the only way to get to heaven, and 2.  God will keep trying to give it to you.
Say you did accept the million dollars...you would have some problems.  Taxes, not knowing if your friends are your friends because they like you, or for your money, ect, but you have the million dollars.  If you accept salvation, sure you're gonna have some problems too.  Persecution, things like that, but you have salvation and will go to heaven.  And there is no way on God's green geo (geo means earth, and I'm putting that there for alliteration, which is when there is the same sound, normally at the beginning of the words in a sentence, that is always repeated, and stuff) that I am saying it's easy.
But, back to you didn't accept the million dollars.
I keep trying and trying and trying to give it to you.  But you still say no.  Then you die.  Are you going to show up somewhere where a bunch of people can try to give you the million dollars for me?  Um...no.  Same with salvation.  God keeps trying and trying and trying to give it to you, but you just say no, over and over and over, and then you die.  It would make no sense to go to a place where humans can pray for you to have what God only can give you, and what you kept rejecting, right?
And that is why I don't believe that there's a purgatory.
Yeah, you get a second chance.  You get chances over and over and over until you die!  But once you die that's it.  That is my stance on it.  Take it or leave it.
~Katie :)

Budump, CHING!

That would be the noise made when you make a joke that's really good.
Who all likes good jokes?  Raise your hand!
Oh wait...I forgot, I can't see your hands through the computer.
Well, I don't really have one right now anyway, so just forget that idea.
Wait!  Correction, I do! Not really a joke, but it is a joke all at once.
When Christians are happy, they celebrate with food, and when they mourn they mourn with food.  Therefore the answer to happiness and sadness is to mourn, and celebrate together with food.
That wasn't really a joke.  It was...just not a joke.  I don't like it much.
Anyway, during my life (well actually just yesterday) I realized something...
When people are teenagers they're really hormonal, right?  Okay, that's kind of basic information about teens, but yatta yatta...and while they're hormonal they have a harder time controlling their emotions, and feelings.  (I've discovered that from books, and my own life.)  When people have yo-yo emotions it's hard for them to find a stable thing.
This is also during the time they are getting ready to go out in the world, and have their own life, with their own convictions, no longer riding on their parents coattails.  They themselves will be asked, "Are you Liberal, or Conservative?"  "Are you a Democrat or a Republican?"  Things like that.
So, they think about their actual opinions, how they truly feel, and all those things.
So, add up emotional yo-yos, thinking about the future, and all the crazy hormones.  And then, add in a little bit of additional stress, school work, and for some trying to get a job.
What do you get?
I'm going to do my own semi algebraic problem.
eyy will stand for emotional yo-yos, tof, for thinking about the future, ch for crazy hormones, as for additional stress, sw, for school work, and ttgj for trying to get a job.
 (eyy+tof+ch+as+sw+ttgj=?)
That is the beginning problem.
So we look at it.  What is each thing caused by?
Well, eyy is caused by the hormones, and possibly some stress, tof is caused by the fact that they're growing up, as I listed before, ch...I'm really not sure what they're caused by.  But now we can eliminate ch, and add it to eyy, so it'd be eyy+ch=chceyy (crazy hormones causing emotional yo-yos.)
IF YOU LIKE MATH, AND DON'T THINK THIS IS GOOD, I WOULD SUGGEST NOT READING THIS WHOLE CRAZY EQUATION.
So now we have one of those subtracted so...
Okay so now on we go.  As is caused by things going on in life, school work is caused by the need for knowledge, and hopefully wisdom, ttgj is caused by the person in question wanting more money.
Now if we have a person who has been exposed to the gospel, and knows the gospel story, and has been saved, this would be the time when Satan comes and tries to get at them.
Now comes the answer to the equation.
chceyy+tof+as+sw+ttgj=hawtol.
Hawtol stands for hardest, and weakest time of life.
So, that would explain why the teen years are the hardest.
Because Satan has been in the messing up lives business from day one, and as learned a thing or two.  He's learned that people doubt more when they're weak, and in a low point of life.
Also, something he's done is worked on corrupting the family, and setting a rebellious pattern for teens to start following, which would mar, sometimes destroy the relationship bonding between child and parents, which would make it harder for the teen to talk to their parent about the stress going on in their life, which would pile on more stress, which would make them turn to their friends, who are at the same point as them.
And, also when that happens it makes it easier to move in on the teen.
If the relationship between child and parent is marred the child wouldn't even talk to their parent about the stress, and doubt that Satan is pressing on them about their faith, and in some cases, would essentially turn from the faith.
But for some people it's the exact opposite.
They get so stressed by it, that they turn to God, and God helps them, and then they grow, and in some cases, God helps them to repair the broken relationship with their parent.
That's what I discovered yesterday.  Although it wasn't so long and drawn out in my mind.
I'm planning on being a psychologist.
Can you tell?
Brother Todd gave me a psychology book to read!
Well, rather I found it, and asked if I could read it.  And he said yes.
I was so happy!
Okay, g'bye.
~Katie :)

Once Upon a Time

Once upon a time, there was a country.  It was stronger, and more free than any country had ever been in the past.
One day, a fateful day, there was an election for a president, and a man won.
He was black, but that's not why it was a sign of impending doom.  It was because of what he stood for.
He stood for abortion, and gay marriage, and promised things that could be close to impossible to keep the promise of.
He promised he would cut the nations debt in half.
He also promised a healthcare named after himself, that would force the people of the country to buy it.
Many people liked him, others hated him, and others didn't care.
Some said he was a Muslim, others said he was just a man with no morals, and others said he was the best thing since sliced bread.
He could not, or would not show the people of the country his birth certificate.
As was the custom in this particular country, after a four year period, the president had to "give up" his office, and risk loosing it to a competitor.
So, this president decided, "Okay, I want to be president again."
So, they had an election.
There were people being shipped in to vote for this president, and voting machines being tampered with.
His opponent had moral values, but was still not the true Christian leader that the country needed.
Finally, the last day came.
People from 18, on up came from far and wide, to vote.
Some voted for the current president, some voted for the person hoping to become the president.
The current president won again.
He didn't cut the debt in half like he promised...
He had lied.
He let many many people in the the military forces die.  For no reason.
He blamed the former president for the problems he had.
Now, for 4 more years he inherited a new mess.
The fear that struck some people in the heart at his reelection was nothing to laugh at.
Some people were terrified, and some gave up all hope, and just though, "Forget this nation, it's dead."
But, God was still in control, and he will always be in control, no matter who the president is.
Some people were scared, and thought that the end of the world was coming.  But no one but God truly knows if it was the end of the world.
People needed to turn to God, and read their Bible.  Pray like they meant it.  Reconnect with God.
Please...turn back to God, and know that there's strength in God, and that he's in control, no matter who holds the office...
If you're not one of his children...be one?
It's quite simple.
First off, there's Romans 3:23...
It says, "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God."
So, see therefore, we're all sinners.
And God won't allow sin in heaven.
But the good news is:
1 John 1:9
If we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us of all unrightousness.
You don't need to tell some priest, just tell God.
And he'll forgive you, and you can go to heaven to live with him.
He never promised that this would be easy, so just remember that you have him on your side, even when you're scared.
And even thought the president that was the president was still in office, those who were Christians remained strong in Christ.  Remembering that God was in control.
The End.
~Katie :)

Church Picnic!

I'm going to a church picnic today, and I am positive that it will be awesome.  I just really really hope that someone from my school can come, because they're my friend, and another of my friends, who is also from my school, but who I knew since before I started going there is coming too.
The best part of church picnics, is that you get free food.  Free food is always a good thing.  Always.
And of course another great part is that you get to hang out with friends.
Does anyone reading this know of people who say they're Christians, and yet they sit and talk and gossip about how horrible everyone else is and how much better than them they are?
I think we all know at least one "Christian" like that.  It's horrible.
See, there was this man, and somehow him and his wife got divorced, and then he got remarried.
These two women were sitting there, and saying, not in these words, but they were saying, "Ugh, how horrible, he divorced his wife, and now he's getting married.  We're so much better than him."
And I was sitting there thinking, "Um, hello, this isn't very Christ-like...Mind changing the topic to maybe...I don't know, how you're gonna witness to him, and help get him back on track?"
And furthermore, what about when those people that "Christians" sit around and gossip about find out all that has been said about them?
They're probably going to think, "Oh...well, if this is a Christian, then I don't want to be one!"
Yeah, and then the gossips wonder why their witnessing doesn't work.
Now, I'm not saying that I'm the poster girl for Christ-likeness.  I blow my top too much.  Although it can take a while before I get to the top blowing point.  Unless you have a major habit of trying to make me mad, in which case it takes a shorter amount of time to blow.
And I'm not saying that I have never gossiped.  I try not to gossip.  I don't always succeed, but I try.  And if I do talk about someone, and are using them as an example, I generally try not to name them.
I do want to say that ranting, hurt, upset talk isn't classified as gossip to me.  No it's still not right, but if you're just sticking your nose into everyone's business, and then sneezing all of their secrets and skeletons out to the world, then that's even worse.
I think I may have spoke on this topic before, but well, it's one that I feel strongly about, and I think people need to learn to not gossip.  Gossiping is not good, and is not acceptable.
Have I posted a picture of Alana yet?  My little vent figure, and daughter?  I also have Bridget, who is Alana's big sister.
Alana is 5 (or 6,) and  Bridget is 13.
Here's a peek into their personalities.
Alana is sweet, and innocent, (she doesn't know what Mountain Oysters are, and I hope to keep her that way) likes only one guy, is mischievous, and enjoys to pretend to tell people who other people like, she loves people, and church, and well, is just awesome.
Bridget likes a ton of different guys, all at once, in fact, she's liked over 10 guys in the month that she's been alive, she's a flirt, she loves dressing up, and she's sweet too.
I'm starting to think she's gonna end up being a chemo patient.
Those are my babies.
If you want to know what they look like, look up Tessie Talks, and Willie Talks on google.  Alana looks like Tessie, and Bridget looks like Willie, but with a wig.
I bought Alana from ebay with my own money, but Bridget I got from one of my second cousins.
They make me happy :)
Well, I hear the thunder rumbling, and I am getting writers itch, (where you must write, or you'll go crazy, the exact opposite from writers block where you can't write no matter how hard you try) Soooo, farewell!
~Katie :)

Grrrrrowling!

Okay, no I'm not mad!  I just like going grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr, it makes me feel like such a tough girl!  Oh yeah, I'm tough!  Sooo tough!  Haha, don't take me seriously on that, even if I don't cry often, I'm still not totally tough.  It's true.  I'm not tough.  I also rarely cry.  I'm not sure why though.  It's strange.  Guess too much time playing the tough girl.
Alright, so, I found something out.  I get more views if I post my posts on facebook!  It's amazing!  I go from like 0 views to like...14!  One of my blog posts had like forty some!  That would be my interviews one.  These are just individual posts though, not the whole blog.
Now, I have a topic on my mind. (no, it's not procrastinating, though that's on my mind too.)  It's judging.  Everyone seems to know that Bible verse that says, "Judge not lest ye be judged," and the one that says, "To every man who judges, let him be judged likewise."  Now, hardly anyone seems to see the verses that say to judge rightly. (I'll find them for ya later, but they will be found!)  To judge rightly means to judge the persons actions, but not the person.  The Bible does say to judge actions.  In fact Jesus even did that!  He judged the Pharises actions, and called them what they were.  Whitewashed tombs.  (pretty on the outside, yucky on the inside.  Much like that popular girl y'all know who is very pretty, but is mean to everyone not in her cliqe)
So no, don't judge the person, and don't gossip about them.  Don't go to your friend Susie, and tell her all these bad things about a person.
If you see someone doing something that doesn't seem right, talk to them about it.  If they say that you're judging them, and get all up in your kool aid, then that's their problem.
The Bible also says to listen to advice.  If it's bad advice, don't listen to it though.  Advice like, "Oh yeah, you should have a drink of beer, it tastes wonderful, and when you're drunk you are a perfect angel!" < That is bad advice.
Advice like, "You wait for your prince okay?  God will bring him along someday, don't worry!" <That is good advice, and as far as I'm concerned it's very true.
Also, listen to your aunt if she advises you not to kiss on those metal slides at the park that are fun to surf down.  Considering she's done it before and it tasted like a 9 volt battery she probably knows what she's talking about.
Or better yet, wait till Christmas when you make him chase you around trying to get you under the mistletoe.
I've always wanted to get kissed under the mistletoe...and dance in the rain...and eat two pickle splits in a row...okay, snapping out of it now!
Don't be too worried about me, kay?  Kay, good.
Noowwwww, anyway, I was just gonna say that judging a person's action, (realizing, and pointing out that the action was bad, and should not be repeated, or done by anyone else) is different from judging a person. (Looking at a persons actions and saying, "dude, you're so messed up, and everything you do is wrong and bad!  Quit it!" and completely unlovingly saying it.)  Although you should tell the person that what they're doing is wrong.
Now, does everyone want to know a fun craft idea?
Of course you do!
Well, all week at VBS (the one at my church) the older kids (10-12) were working on decorating three ring binders.  They were all the big ones, and the cloth that they all used was denim, (hey for once I spelled it denim first instead of tiepoing it demin!) and they were pretty awesome.
What they did was they cut the cloth (the denim) into one inch (approximately) thick strips, and took craft glue, and glued them horizontally across their binders.  There was one boy who did them vertically, and they all looked pretty awesome.
After they did that they decorated them with pockets, and decals, (well, most of them did, Norma chose to leave hers with only the pocket) and it was all in all a wonderful craft.
I didn't do that craft however.  I was given permission to, but I politely declined, as I thought it would be better if I helped out the crafters with their cutting and stuff.
I did however make one at home!  Today!  So far I have the cloth (not denim) cut out, and glued onto my binder.  No decals yet though.  No pockets or anything.  Would you like to see a picture?
Too bad, I left my camera in the other room, and I'm too lazy to go get it!  Haha, I'm kiddin', I'll get them to you tomorrow.
I was kidding about the no  pictures, but you can't have them right now.  Remind me later ;)
Later than now....Yes I know, I know, it's later, but, I mean later like, much much later!
Thank you....
Okay, now I'm gonna talk about Prince Charming vrs Knight in Shining Armor.  Who would you rather have?
For me I would rather have a Knight in Shinning Armor.  I mean, seriously, think about it, what is the mental image you get when you think Prince Charming.  You got that in your mind?  Okay good, keep it there.  Now think of a Knight in Shinning Armor.  What's that mental image?
When I think of a Prince Charming, I think of a handsome man, who lavishes his princess with whatsoever her heart desires, and can give her anything she wants.  Handsome, winks at her across the room, smiles at her, wraps his arms around her, and gives everyone a big movie grin.  Not really wrong persay, but...well, when I think of a Knight in Shinning Armor, I think of a man who's strong, and brave, and can protect me against practically anything.  A handsome guy, who will give his princess hugs, and make her feel like a treasure.  Maybe he can't give her every single thing that she wants, but when you think about it, you don't even want half the stuff you want!
(for example, if I had a TV, I'd spend all my time watching TV, and none doing stuff like blogging, and talking to people, and reading books, and stuff like that.)
So for me, I'd rather be protected, and feel like a treasure than getting whatever I want, and having a prince with a film star grin.
The next order of "business" otherwise known as my crazy ramblings, is my book!
The Unnamed Legend.  I started it when I was...twelve?  I may have been ten.  I know I was ten when I started writing.  Granted, my work was a bit confusing, and the grammar was atrocious, the spelling made no sense whatsoever, but I still wrote.  I think I was ten or eleven, maybe twelve when I started it, but no older than.
See it started out as being typed up in a whatchamicallit with no spell check, and I started writing it.  Back then it had no name.  It was in fact titled, "Ha Ha Kayden."  Don't ask me why, I really don't know!
It had the worst grammar and spelling in the world I would think.
Thankfully I knew how to use quotation marks, and capitalization, but my spelling was awful!
I had my their, there, and they're's all mixed up!  Not to mention that half the time "their" was spelled, "thier."
Thankfully I've gotten a lot better at spelling.  And grammar.  And all that stuff really.
I think that sometimes I've turned into a Grammar Nazi!
I'm going to set up a blog just for my book, and I'd love for you to go check it out when I get it up!
Anyway, that's all for now!
~Katie

Untitled Titledness!

I have some rantingishness to do here.
First off, it seems lately that everyone, Christians, and non Christians aren't stepping up and doing what they can to better this world.  And well, it's just wrong.  They sit there and say, "It's not my place to do this, it's their place.  I'm not doing anything!"  And they say that they don't want to cause drama, they don't want to get involved.
Think about Hadassa, better known as Esther.  She was a Jew who got picked to marry the king of Persia.  THE KING!  Okay, so I don't know how wealthy her family was, but I'm pretty sure they weren't as rich as the king, so she goes from...poorish, to very rich.
And then there's the king's right hand man.  Very powerful dude, he gets the king's ring, and makes a decree that cannot be reversed.
"Kill all the Jews!  Take their land!"
Queen Esther is a Jew.  She was told by her Uncle Mordicai not to tell anyone that she was a Jew though, and she took on the name Esther.  So, no one knows that she's a Jew.  She's safe.
Her uncle let's her know what's going on, and tells her, "You gotta tell the king, and have him make a new decree!  Please, for your people!"
And then she says, "No way!  That's not my place!  I feel sorry for the rest of y'all, but...well, I'm here, and I'm safe, and I might cause drama if I bring up the tiny fact that I am a Jew.  I can't get involved or stick my neck out there!"
And then Haman and his men go, and they kill every Jew there is.
Then, Esther realizes that all the Jew's included her uncle!  So she runs to the king, and begs for him to kill Haman for the murder of her uncle.  The king asks who her uncle is, and she tells him.  He finds out and stares at her in shock.
Haman comes in.
"Haman!  You killed her uncle!!!"
Haman is shocked.  "I did what??"
"You killed her uncle, and she wants you dead!"
"Who's her uncle?"
"Mordicai the Jew!"
"If he's a Jew than she's a Jew..."
"Yeah so?"
Haman quickly kills Esther where she stands shocking the king, and killing off all of the Jews.
THE END! :)
Yeah, that's how it would be if she had said "Um, I'm sorry, I don't want to cause drama, or get in the middle of this.  It's not my place.  It's the king's place, he's the one in charge."
Instead she said, "Oh my word!  I'm scared, but first, I'll pray, then I'll feed the king, I know that men are always happier on full stomachs."
She prays, and then after two banquets, she tells the king, "I know I should have told you before hand, but I'm a Jew and your right hand man there, Haman, he wants to kill all the Jews.  PLEASE don't let him!"
The king is in shock, steps out for a brief moment and comes back to see Haman choking his wife.
Haman gets hung, and the Jew's get to defend themselves against those trying to kill them.
Because she was willing to step up, and wasn't saying that it wasn't her place, it was this persons place, and that persons place.  She was a brave woman.
I also heard tell of a man who saved 600+ Jewish kids from concentration camps, and gas houses.  He stuck his neck out there, and literally risked his life to save them kids!
Why are people nowdays just turning a blind eye?
A kid is getting abused?  "Oh, well, she's an underaged slut anyway, throws herself at guys and likes it.  Besides, its not my place to turn the guy in, its the abuser's wife's place!"
A kid at school is getting bullied?  "They're not popular, and the bully would just beat me up for helping.  Besides, it's not my place to help out, its the principal's job!"
Someone is sticking gum on the pews at church? "Um...they're like the church bully, I mean yeah, churches aren't supposed to have bullies, but see, if I confronted them, they'd just get mad at me!  And besides, its not my place to confront them, it's the pastor's job!!!"
The church needs people to help with VBS?  "Oh sorry, I'm all booked up for that week!  Besides, it's not my place to help with VBS!  Leave that up to the old ladies!!!"
You know, if everyone said that, we would get nothing done!
I know I'm not the best at doing this, but it's true.  There's always someone else that you can pin the responsiblity on, but, if you're there, and you can do something, then do it!  That's all you gotta do.  See something you can help with, and help!
Okay, done!

Hello, my Sunday Afternoon readers!

Hey there people!  Do any of you remember my blog post Interviews?  The one about modesty?  Well, I was on Project Inspired, and there was a thing about Modesty, and what do guys think about it, and how you can help them.
There was a video, with real guys, being asked real questions, and answering them from their hearts.  Here's the link to the post: What Guys Think About Modesty
In the comments there was a link to a Modesty Survey that two brothers conducted.  Here's the link to that: Modesty Survey
Now, last but not least is the link to my interview of various people, about modesty, and clothes, and girls, and things like that: My Interviews
I just thought that you people would be interested in that.
I've got a lot to talk about, but I'm not sure if I should or not.  You see, it's about my opinions, my world views, how I view the Bible, some of my beliefs.  Then again, I think that I ought to, that way everyone knows where I stand.
Jewelry: It depends what kind, how it's worn, and why it's worn.  This is one of those things that I think is, and should be a personal conviction.  My denomination is the Holiness denomination, and they say that jewelry should not be worn.  I'm not allowed (normally) to wear jewelry when I'm up on the platform, so I will honor that, but I will wear jewelry at home, and just about everywhere else.  Yes I will even wear it to church, just not up on the platform.  I've worn a ring, (somewhat of a purity ring, but not really) and now I've got a bracelet that Justice gave me, and I intend to wear that at all times except sleeping, and taking a shower, and times when I am told that I cannot wear it.  I do think that it can be worn as a compliment to your body, that God gave you, but not in a way soley to attract attention.  I also think that if someone close to you gave you a piece of jewelry it is perfectly fine to wear it, to think of them, if they're dead to remember them.  For example, (other than the bracelet from Justice) I used to go to a church in a small town just a 10 minute drive away from my house, and there was this nice old lady, who was blind, and I would just go up to her, and talk to her, and be her friend, things like that, and one day she gave me a necklace with red beads, and a little green Westie on the end of it.  I wore that everywhere, even in the bathtub, until it fell apart.  Then I turned it into a bracelet, which I later lost.  I have no problem with that.
Pants on Girls: Eh, this is a hard topic, even for me.  See, for me it depends on how tight the pants are, and how short/long they are, but sometimes I think that pants are more modest than skirts.  See, with skirts, you can see someone's underwear, but with pants, if they're worn right, and aren't tight you can't, and you can't see the form of the persons legs.  I've also said that if I had to choose between my daughter wearing a miniskirt, or short shorts, I would pick short shorts.  Yes, they are as short, or sometimes a lil shorter than a miniskirt, but, it would be a lot harder to see her underwear.  I like wearing skirts, and I will probably always wear skirts, and dress my daughters in skirts, but, I have no problem with pants, so long as they're modest.  Short shorts on the other hand, aren't acceptable, no matter where you are or what you're doing.  UNLESS they are under your skirt.
Now, here's a wonderful thing for me to tell you!  I'm spending the night at my grandma and grandpa's, and my aunt has decided that I need to go to bed.  At least at home I know ahead of time, like an actual ahead of time when I've got to get the computer off, and go to bed, but my aunt has decided that we're going to bed right after devotions (I do that myself every night, just at my time) and I can't sleep, I know that much, because I'm not even tired.  Joy.  Not to mention that my blog post isn't nearly done, and if I want to try to get to talk to Aunt Maricel I'll have to stay up till..later, and my cousin Andrew and I normally talk later in the day, like late at night, like, we normally both go to bed around midnight together.  Okay, that didn't come out right, but, y'all knew what I meant.
Well, dear people, I'm sorry that I am being forced off of here, earlier than my adult friend, who goes to bed early.  Yes Ronda, if you're reading this, I'm talking about you.
Normally she's at least on to talk to at 10!

Grrrrrrrawwwwwgh

If you're wondering about that title, as I'm sure you are, that's because it's thundering here, and that's the sound that thunder makes.
It's also raining, and I DO love the rain.
Today (well rather yesterday, as today is already tomorrow, which is Monday,) Pastor Chad preached about two things in one sermon.  Being sanctified, and being a witness.  He did both of these at the same time.  Preached about them I mean.  And did them too, I'm sure.
If you need a definition of "sanctification" like I did, I'll give you the one that my pastor's wife gave to me: "Sanctification is when you take a plain white unwritten on piece of paper, and you sign you name at the bottom before anything is written on it, and then after you sign it, God will write down bit by bit what he wants you to do.  And you, as a sanctified Christian will do what God asked of you."
Which, it now makes more sense when people are saying that you need to be sanctified holy, and set apart.  It means that you make an agreement to do what God asks, before he asks it, because you know he won't give you more than you can bear.
Pastor Chad said that we're a walking sermon, or something to that affect, which the way I understood it means that people are watching us.  Watching our every move.
People who haven't stepped inside a church in ten years know the Bible, and they know when we're being hypocrites, and they know when we're saying one thing, and living another.
We need to practice what we preach.  And we need to be examples.  I believe that that's how he said it.
And another sermon that I heard a little less than a year ago was about light.  We're the light of where ever we are.
If we're at the mall, we're the light, we should shine for Jesus.  If we're at church we should shine for Jesus.  If we're buying groceries we should be the light.
DON'T HIDE YOUR LIGHT!
God lit your candle for a reason, he has someone he wants you to touch with your light!
He also brought up a man who I don't remember, he knew he was someday going to have to go through the fire, literally, he was burned at the stake for either being a Christian or preaching, I don't remember which, but he was sitting in front of a candle, holding his hand over it, and his friends saw him through the window, and said, "What in the world are you doing?!" (paraphrasing just so you know) and he said, "I'm going to have to go through the fire, and I don't want to disappoint my God."
He was strengthening himself, by God's help, so he wouldn't back down when he was called before the people and burned.
Pastor Chad also brought up Stephen (no not my Uncle Stephen, as awesome as he is, he's not as awesome as the Stephen in the Bible, whom I think he was named after.)
Stephen was preaching, and after he was done, he was stoned for preaching.  And when he died, well, I just can't paraphrase this, it wouldn't work, this is what Acts 6:15 KJV (King James Version) says: "And all that sat in the council, looking stedfastly on him, saw his face as it had been the face of an angel."
Who knows how many people were saved because Stephen wasn't ashamed, because he was willing to die for what he believed in.
They're watching us, and they want to see if it really works.  They want to see if we're really happy, they want to see if we're really content, really at peace.
We're witnesses of everything we stand for, just by the way we act.
There's this poem, and I'll post that, then get out of your hair.
You Tell On Yourself
Author Unknown
You tell on yourself
By the friends you seek,
By the manner in which you speak;
By the way you employ your leisure time,
By the use you make of every dollar or dime.

You tell what you are
By the things you wear,
By the spirit by which your burdens you bear;
By the kind of things at which you laugh,
By the records you play on your phonograph.

You can tell what you are
By the way you talk,
By the manner in which you bear defeat;
By so simple a thing as what you eat,

By the books you choose from a well-defined shelf.
In these ways and more, you tell on yourself.
So there is really not a particle of sense
In your efforts to keep up your false pretense

In short, I liked Pastor Chad's sermon, and realize that I'm not always practicing what I preach no matter how much I try.
Anyway, I'll be back later.  Maybe even later tonight (this morning, as it's 1:03, and it's still thundering, so I can't go to sleep.)
Katie :)