heya

my little cousin is SOOO cute!! i love her. she really wants to type something of her own, but it's just the space bar over and over again. she says Hi. hope y'all have fun tonite.

Reply: Cults vs. Religion

Erin, I think what you said pretty much summed it up: cults are the worship and uplifting of something worldly, and religions are the uplifting of a higher power, or creator, or some divine being. But I can see how some people say that cults and religions are the same...if you look at the definition for each word, they are described very similarily:

Religion:
1. the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods.
2. a particular system of faith and worship.
3. a pursuit or interest followed with devotion.

Cult:
1. a system of religious worship directed towards a particular figure or object.
2. a small religious group regarded as strange or as imposing excessive control over members.
3. something popular or fashionable among a particular section of society.

Many people consider cults very similar to religions because of things like definitions 1 and 2 from the word "cult". I think the key is to know that the word "religion" can take a couple different forms...for example, watching our favourite TV show religiously is very different from being a religious (faithful or righteous) person. Hopefully this sheds some light on the topic for you.

Thursday

is something happening tomorrow???

Cults vs. religion

i don't mean any specific religion. actually, maybe i do. it was more focused on Christianity. anyway, to the story:

there was a girl in my class today that said that cults and religion were basically the same. i was like, i totally don't believe that, they are total opposites. but then one of the only differences i could actually think of is that cults are usually created by humans in worship of humans and (yay!) Jesus, who even though he was the son of God was a human, in worship of God.

I'd really like your imput if you have any wisdom on the subject. it's not gonna shake my faith or anything, but just so i can be prepared next time a question like that comes my way...

Good and Bad

hello out there! well i am just amazed at how much this blog has already been used in the one day that it has been up and running...but you guys amaze me and God amazes me with what he is doing in your lives! i love it!
so my little miracle this week... on sunday night i had a nightmare. woke up at 3:15am scared out of my mind. when i get nightmares, which i don't get very often, i get them bad. so i woke up and was like how in the world am i going to go back to sleep? i know that if i go back to sleep the nightmare will just pick up from where it left off. so then i was like oh duh, pray! so i started praying really hard, just for God to take away the pictures in my mind and to calm me down, and just to be my comfort that night. and wow is all i can say...i immediately felt more comfortable, and i laid back down and fell asleep praying! no more nightmares! yay! praise God!
and the other thing was that well i had to perform a monologue for drama class yesterday. and i was really really nervous...if you guys don't know, i get really bad nerves before getting up in front of a crowd of people. i love being up there, but my nerves are really bad. so i was praying the whole time before i went up. and i was just waiting to go on stage, and i was shaking because i was super super nervous. so i was praying super hard and i was like God just take away the nerves and help me remember my lines and let this be ok. so i stepped onto the stage...and immediately i was calm. i started talking and i didn't mess up once. my monologue went better than i had imagined. i was totally in character and i moved around the stage and my voice was loud enough and it rose and fell with my words and emotions. afterwards, everyone was congratulating me on how well i did...but i was giving the glory to God because he had made me less nervous and just allowed me to have that awesome experience!
but my week hasn't been all good...it's been hard, too. especially yesterday. when i came home from school, my mom was kinda in a bad mood. she was just really nit-picky about the things i had to do and wouldn't get off my case about some stuff. and it's not like i was being bad or anything...i was doing what she asked and i wasn't stomping up the stairs or anything. but it just really bothered me because i wasn't doing anything wrong...at least not that i could see. and still she was just on my back.
the other thing i can't tell you guys about right here or right now, but if you guys could just pray for me on this unmentioned issue that would be awesome because i feel very alone and confused on this issue and i just don't know what to do.

Change Me

<----Hey you guys do you remember this?

I thought it was cool and also I think this song describes kinda how I feel after Mexico.

Change Me-Sanctus Real

Did I change your mind with What I said last night? Did I break your heart by Straying so far?From what you have in mind For my life?Would you change me from Who I've been lately?'Cause I know I'm nothing Without you Did my words betray the Patience I once claimed Can't you see it in my face?I need your grace Would you change me from Who I've been laterly?'Cause I know I'm nothing Without you Would you save me from The way I've been lately?'Cause I can't see living Without you Would you change me from Who I've been lately?'Cause I know I'm nothing without you Would you break me from The way I've been lately?'Cause I can't see living Without you

Another little miracle

Well, i finally figured this thing out.Today was a bit better than yesterday, though i felt worse with my cold and i'm pretty sure i failed a physics test.Sorry guys, don't mean to be pessimistic. Another little miracle happened today. Sort of like what i shared at the sunday service. I was sittin in psychology class today in fourth, and all of a sudden i felt really sick, AGAIN! So i thought " time for prayer!" I prayed silently in my desk. I prayed that God wouldn't let me throw up in class and that i would feel better. I know you all believe me when i say I FELT COMPLETELY BETTER! Praise be to God! Isn't He amazing? Can i get an 'Amen' to that Erin? Last night i read this passage and thought of Mexico and of all of you.What an awesome God we serve.

I saw the Lord always before me.
Because He is at my right hand,
I will not be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body will also live in hope,
because you will not abandon me to the grave,
nor will you let your Holy One see decay.
You have made known to me the paths of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence.

Acts 2:25-28

The Power of God revealed Again!

Well, When I got home today after school my Mom had a really bad tooth ache to the point where it hurt to talk so I'm just sitting there and I was thinking I really should Pray for her. But then why I'm sure she'll get better after time or what if she is totally creeped out by this, anyways then I was like that is so stupid she is my mom she'll love me no matter what. So then I went and got my sister and I asked if I could pray pray for her and she turned around from what she was doing and her eyes just lit up and she said yes. So we just stood there in my kitchen praying. It felt really strange somehow but then It reminded me of Mexico. So after praying I went to do some homework and my Mom came downstairs and she was like I'm feeling awesome and my tooth doesn't hurt any more. Now how about that. Praise be to God who was and is and is to come. Amen!

second day back into a new missions field

AHHHHH!! oh my goodeness!!!!!!!!!!! this is soo exciting!! everybody give a shout of joy. now stand up where ever you are and do a happy dance. i mean it!! i honestly just did one. you should too. it's fun. woww!! you guys are really amazing! the blogsite looks absolutely awesome.

i was just writing another one of my mass email thingers, but now i can just post it here!! that's so awesome!!! thank you erika and katelynn!!!! hee hee, i love purple. here's what i was gonna email:

okay, well today was a little bit better than the first day back. (check your email if you haven't already) and i got to witness a small miracle. in my daily life. isn't that exciting?

i was in math class and this is the worst class all day long because basically i have no close friends and the somewhat friends i do have are definately not christian. the people in that class do nothing but complain and give attitude to the teacher and to each other. they swear and talk about drugs, what they did when they were drunk and gossip nonstop. it's like nothing that comes out of their mouths is good, like they are incapable of saying something beneficial or nice. my poor teacher, whos done nothing to deserve it, is almost always the brunt of their meaness and attitude. so as you can probably tell, this class almost always gets me down. but today, i couldn't help but smile because i got a small miracle.

They were really digging in hard to the teacher and suddenly it hit me that their words and actions were evil and evil comes from Satan. so i prayed (in my wonderful, handy-dandy pj- (prayer journal)), "father forgive them. their tongues are wicked and are controlled by satan. In your holy name, make their tongues silent. Father, perform a miracle and shut their mouths. You have power over darkness." and no, joke, as i was writing this, the room got silent and for the rest of class, i didn't witness one of them giving attitude to the teacher. i heard some swearing still and they weren't silent or anything. but, i didn't hear any complaints for a full half hour!!! My God is powerful and awesome. it doesn't seem like anything huge to you maybe, but it was really exciting to me.

Let wicked words drown in righteousness oh God.

We bow our hearts,

We bend our knees,

Oh Spirit come make us humble.

We turn our eyes,

From evil things,

Oh Lord we Cast down our idols.

Give us clean hands,

Give us pure hearts,

Let us not lift our souls to another.

And God let us be a generation that seeks,

seeks your face, oh God of Jacob.

Testing.

Hi, just a post to see how things are looking. This blog should be completely up and running within the next week.