Crazy Life

I have been slowly learning that this world doesn't revolve around me. You care, but not that much, whether or not I put another scene of my book up. It's not like I'm breaking any one's heart by not writing. I have been busy with important things. More important than writing a self-pleasing story.

This week is VBS week at my church and I, and my friend Kate, have been practicing for the drama for the past few hundred years---well, more like 2 months, but it's crunch time now. And I have yet to learn my lines for tonight...

My grandfather is in town, so taking care of him definitely takes priority of my writing. He likes to play Dominoes and for the first time in my life I beat him....I just had to brag, for I'm rather pleased with myself ;-)

I have also been studying for a girls Bible study that I am going to be leading in a month. I feel so unprepared and unworthy to peer-to-peer disciple all my beautiful friends. So if you ever have a chance, pray that God will grant me wisdom and understanding as I read His word.

Another activity I have gotten myself into is editing my brother's book. He is my writing idol, so to speak, and has inspired me to write for about seven years...And now I get to bless him back by proof-reading his eloquent novel! Oh! He is brilliant!

Tell me what you've been up to, and tell me whether or not you'd be interested in the rest of my story, and tell me if you will pray for me, and tell me one random and wonderful thing God has done for you this week. (For instance, my random, wonderful thing God did for me was have my mother put a pair of finger nail clippers in my purse. It was so out of the ordinary...but when I got to church for VBS, my friend came up to me with a finger nail emergency! God knew what would happen, and He took care of her finger nail...God is so good!)

National Novel Writing Month A Few Months Early

Soooo Sunshyne is the only person who voted. Thank you, Sunshyne ;) You voted for National Novel Writing Month!

As of RIGHT NOW, I'm plotting and creating some characters...I'll write soon! I already have a few scenes---but if I posted them now, they'd be all out of order xD

So now I have to write everything in order. Yikes.

Did you know I've never finished a novel before? But I'll try for your sake.

Here is my Pinterest board I made for this story. All the pictures on the board won't necessarily happen in the story. The pins just seem to fit the mood of the story..

I'll introduce you to the characters I have so far.

Katrina:

 my protagonist. (This isn't what she looks like at the beginning, just so everyone knows) She has no family or friends or place to lay her head at night. That's at the beginning of the book. She's starving half the time, and she'll do anything for food. She changes when she meets-

Armand:

supporting protagonist. He finds Katrina on the streets of the city, which looks like this:

Anyway, Armand is a leader. He is strong and bold. When first he meets Katrina, he wants to use her for his political cause.But later he begins to like her as a good friend.

Jo:

Jo is my feisty girl. She and Armand have known each other for years. Katrina finds her to be the loner-a rude vigilante, of sorts. But there is more to her than meets the eyes.

Mary:

The big sister. She is kind to everyone but Jo. She is everyone's friend-except Jo's...It appears that Jo gets on Mary's nerves...But other than being around Jo, Mary is wonderful.

The Gov'ner:

No, that's not how I'm going to spell his name-it's just how everyone in the story pronounces the word 'Governor'. Here's what he almost looks like:

(Minus the weird hat.)
He is the most important guy of the story. Although not the main character, it is he who set all the events in action. He is old and wise. The 'been there, done that' sort of fellow.


And that's all my characters so far! I have to get off my computer now because of a thunder storm (I love thunder storms, they are awesome displays of our mighty God's power!)...But I'm writing my first chapter right now :-) Maybe I'll have it up by tomorrow...

New topic?

I am stuck..Now that this month is over, I want to choose a new topic to focus on...but OH! What should it be?

I have been wanting to do the following topics:

  A Month On Writing: Tips And Tidbits That Have Helped Me.
With this topic, I'll just spill back out to you what I have learned in English, Grammar, and Literature classes, as well as a few writing instructional books I've read along the way.

  NaNoWriMo.
In other words, National Novel Writing Month.Yes, I know it is officially in November, but I have never actually written a novel before. I'd like to practice writing one in a month. Since it is summer, now is the perfect opportunity!

  Blast From The Past: A Month Of History
This topic sounds like so much fun to me! I get to research quite a bit of history, and write a paper about it! What fun! I already have a few people in mind whom I would like to discuss: Ludwig II: Mad King of Bavaria; Queen Margaret; William the Silent: Savior of the Dutch..and many more!

  Books is what you do; art is who you are
This is a quote from Tokyo, my beloved brother. I asked him what one word would describe me, and he said, without hesitation, "Art."
 I asked him, "Why not books?"
He replied, "Books is what you do; art is who you are."
I must say, that is the highest compliment I have ever received from anyone (Besides Jesus), which is why I want to talk about it a little more.
Writing about this topic I will try to answer the question asked by so many: "Who am I?"- You don't know-I hardly know-But like I said, as I write, I learn. If you want to go on that journey with me, I'll take you along.

We can be a democracy here. Post in the comments what you would like me to write for you next month. I'll give you 2 votes per person, and I will then write for you the most popular topic for the month of June.

Thank you so much, my dedicated followers! You are all so encouraging to me!

Please check out my friend Faith's new blog here. She is a sweet friend, and I am so happy that she now has a blog!

The Truth About Truth

I'm not going to lie, this month it has been HARD TO WRITE. I have so many excuses to give; it would take an entire post to list them, but there ain't nobody got time for that!

Therefore, I will commence my final post about truth, and what better to write about than truth itself?

I may have been gone for ages upon ages, but, I have not forgotten my topic. While, I was not necessarily meditating on this (which would have been good for me), I did give it a good hard thought every other day...

Truth:

What is it? There are so many Bible verses about it...where do I start? I must say I have been baffled by it frequently...

But why should I be? Jesus gave us the definition oh so clearly: "I am the Way, the TRUTH, and the Life, no man comes to the Father except through Me." (John 14:6)

Jesus is truth. He is the only truth.

But still I am at a loss to understand.

The dictionary says truth is anything that is true (to which I reply: CIRCULAR REASONING...but whatever, Mirriam Webster...)

And true means: agreeing with the facts: not false; real or genuine; consistent.

Now, I'm beginning to see the light...(Have I ever told you I dive head first into my blog posts? I learn as I write and drag you along for the journey. You're welcome!)

Jesus is real; He is genuine; He is consistent. What facts does He agree with? All facts! He invented facts.

His ways are true. He never lies. His words are true. He is true. I wonder what it is like to be true...

Are you just reading past that? Do you grasp what I am saying? I have the queerest feeling as I ponder these things. What is it like to be true? Is there a rock-hard answer that I am missing? Do you have it? It must be in the Bible, if there is an answer at all. I'll look:

The Bible Promise Book for Women reads as follows: "In the Bible, the idea of truth carries four interpretations: 1) actual, true to fact; 2) real, ideal, genuine; 3) dealing faithfully or truly with others; and 4) truth in all its fullness and scope, as embodied in Jesus, showing sincerity and integrity of character."

For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and His faithfulness continues to each generation. (Psalm 100:5)

The Rock! His work is perfect, for all His ways are just; a God of faithfulness and without injustice. righteous, and upright is He. (Deuteronomy 32:4)

Doing everything in truth is to do it faithfully, sincerely, genuinely, righteously, justly, and unfailingly. And Jesus does just that, for He is truth itself.

{ Buy the truth, and do not sell it, also wisdom and instruction, and understanding. (Proverbs 23:23)

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things. (Philippians 4:8)

This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down His life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in His presence whenever our hearts condemn us. (1 John 3:16-20)

These are the things you are to do: Speak the truth to each other, and render true and sound judgement in your courts. (Zechariah 8:16)

For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. (John 1:17)

And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free. (John 8:32)  }

The Truth About Words of Life

Have you ever been verbally abused? Maybe it wasn't the absolutely nasty kind with all those colorful words, but maybe it was the not-so-evident kind, the kind of verbal abuse that people might not even consider verbal abuse.

When a friend mocks the way you speak.

When a brother criticizes a piece of art you have worked so hard on.

When your mom gets on to you about the horrible job you did making dinner.

When your dad doesn't appreciate the work you put into fixing something for him.

When your sister smirks at a poem you wrote.

You were trying to do good things. They don't recognize the effort you put into all of it. They condemn you for the little mistakes.

And it hurts, probably more than it should. Your heart aches; your gut is heavy. Your throat even chokes...

It hurt, but you weren't yelled at.

It rips you up inside, but you weren't even struck.

Now imagine this:
Your sister is tied to a post. You have a whip in your hands and all the power to strike her. What are you going to do?

Well, you're not going to whip her are you?

NO WAY!

You love her. You would never hurt her!

Would you?

Now you are back at your house. She walks in your room while you are enjoying a fantastic book.

 (Ugh! How irksome! I hate it when people interrupt a good read!)

She says, "I just bought a new game for the X-box! Lego Batman! Your favorite! Let's go play!"

You are vexed. So you say, "What are you doing? You didn't even knock on my door! YOU KNOW THE RULES ABOUT KNOCKING ON DOORS, you little pest. Get out! It's not my favorite. You're just being selfish because it's your favorite and you want someone to play it with you to get you through all the hard parts-don't tell me I'm wrong, I know exactly what you're thinking!"

She leaves quietly and you can get back to your precious book.

But, what were you thinking??

Your favorite game really is Lego Batman, no matter how much you deny it, and your sister knows it too. She wanted to give to you, but you threw it back in her face.

Do you remember how you felt after your friend mocked the way you spoke; after your brother criticized your art; after your mom got on to you; and after your dad undervalued the work you did?

Do you remember when you could have whipped your sister, but didn't?

Did you know that you just did?

No, you didn't actually lay a finger on her, but by slandering her the way you did, you might as well have whipped her skin instead of beating her ego.

It hurts on the inside sometimes way more than it does on the outside. Trust me, I know.

So what do we do?

Do you remember when I was talking about words of life? For starters, in a situation like the one I just described, you could speak kindly:

"Darling sister, you are the sweetest peach that ever walked the face of this planet. Thank you oobers for buying me my favorite game. Will you please play it with me this evening instead of now, for you see I am reading a wonderful book-not that this book is better than you, believe me, sister, it isn't! I just want to spare you the ill mood I shall surely be in if I am parted from the events of Ivanhoe and Rowena. I must ensure that she is safely rescued, before I even dream of commencing to rescue Gotham City. You do understand don't you? It is for your own good! I look forward to our missions as Batman and Robin, but first I must be intertwined in the missions of Ivanhoe and Locksley. Good sister, you are wonderful. Goodby now."

Don't you see how much better of a statement this is? It accomplishes everything! 1.) You complimented and thanked your sister numerous times. 2.) You got to read the rest of your book. and 3.) You get to play Lego Batman later!! A fantastic remedy to the previous speech in which you hurt your beautiful sister and probably would have gotten grounded, thus being unable to play Batman or finish your book!

Please understand this as I am trying to. I have found so much that I am totally unaware of other people's feelings as I live from day to day. I grumble and complain often, which is a sure damper on other people's chipper days. I mock, which is absolutely insulting. I tease-which can also be lying, it is a horrible thing. I dishonor my parents, sometimes without even realizing I am doing it. It is a constant circle of insults and apologies of which I am tiring.

I'm doing my best to compliment in place of mocking; having a cheery disposition instead of grumbling; and gratify instead of tease. Oh, but it is so hard!

The Truth About Food

1 Corinthians 10:31

 Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

This is one of the verses that helped inspire this month's topic. All my life, I have wondered, "How in the world do we eat and drink and EVERYTHING to the glory of God?"

Now, maybe you have figured it out, if so, let me know in the comments, please!

But here is my light-bulb moment I had a few months ago, which I have been brainstorming ever since:

Food brings us together:

We fellowship around food, whether it be a church potluck, a Thanksgiving dinner, or just a family luncheon. 

We serve food to others. We like having people over to enjoy a meal. Jesus did too. Remember this:

Luke 5:27-32

27 After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. “Follow me,” Jesus said to him, 28 and Levi got up, left everything and followed him.

29 Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectorsand others were eating with them. 30 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”

31 Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”

We also serve food.

Jesus did too:

Mark 14:

22 During the meal Jesus took some bread in his hands. He blessed the bread and broke it. Then he gave it to his disciples and said, “Take this. It is my body.”

23 Jesus picked up a cup of wine and gave thanks to God. He gave it to his disciples, and they all drank some. 24 Then he said, “This is my blood, which is poured out for many people, and with it God makes his agreement. 25 From now on I will not drink any wine, until I drink new wine in God’s kingdom.”

Oh, and just so you know, Jesus not only likes to eat with sinners and disciples, but He also wants to eat with you (yes, you).

Revelation 3:20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If any man hear My voice and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me.

Now of course, Jesus is talking about spiritual food. It is symbolic, yes, yes, I know.

But still, food is important. Cultures revolve around the foods they make. 

When we think of America, we think about apple pie and hotdogs.

Japan is sushi and raw fish.

England is tea and scones.

Mexico is fajitas and tacos and burritos and rice.

Why do you think we have so many varieties of food? Why did God make all these flavors?

He could have just given us one kind of fruit tree to feed us and keep us healthy. He could have made tongues without taste buds.

Can you imagine what that would be like?

But He didn't! God gave us the ability to taste and enjoy breakfast, second breakfast, elevenses, luncheon, afternoon tea, dinner, and supper!

Why?

Because He wants us to see how absolutely awesome He is!

 We pray before we eat, thank Him for our meal, and say Amen. But have you ever truly thought how thankful we should really be that God gave us so much flavor in our lives?

Praise Him with me and thank Him so much for food, glorious food!

The Gospel Truth

Now it's time to get back on track. This month isn't supposed to be about me. I want to dedicate this to truth, so here I go again:

First, all truth must be based off of THE truth, and what is THE truth? Well, Jesus, obviously, "I am the Way the TRUTH and the life, no man comes to the Father except through Me."

What is this coming to the Father bit? Well, I'll tell you: The Gospel Truth!

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish, but have everlasting life.

(John 3:16, in case you didn't know, but I'm pretty sure you did.)

First off, I was taught to share the gospel when I went to Haiti on the mission trip. Before then (2012) I never knew how to share my faith. We used tracks which look like this:

It's a little blurry, but you can see it. --And just so I don't get in any copyright scandal--It is a trademark of Hope Missions.

I'm using this because it is what I learned with.

The purple crown represents God. "Who is God?" you ask? (Silly question, but I forgive you.)

GOD IS OUR CREATOR. Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

What is God like? 

Romans 3: 

21 But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22 This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25 God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— 26 he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.

God is just and righteous...I think the verse is rather self-explanatory.

God is gracious:

For by grace you have been saved through faith, not of yourselves: it is a gift of God. (Romans Ephesians 2:8)

God is perfect:"Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect."Matthew 5:48

There is a holy God everywhere all the time. He hates sin, and He wants to save us from it. He is love. But He also is wrathful towards sin..

He can be an angry God and a merciful one at the same time. Yikes.

Who am I to try to explain who God is?

He baffles me. I do not know Him but that He has saved my life and I am indebted to Him forever.

1 Peter 2:9 

But you are a chosen people, a 

royal priesthood, a holy nation, a 

people belonging to God, that you 

may declare the praises of him 

who called you out of darkness 

into his wonderful light. 

Praise God!

Psalm 13:6 

I will sing to the 

LORD, for he has 

been good to me

..

Psalm 9:11 

Sing praises to the 

LORD, 

enthroned in Zion; proclaim 

among the nations what he has 

done.

..

Psalm 9:1-2 

I will praise you, 

O LORD

, with all 

my heart; I will tell of all your 

wonders. 

I will be glad and rejoice 

in you; I will sing praise to your 

name, O Most High. 

 ..

Ephesians 1:3 

Praise be to the God and Father 

of our 

LORD

 Jesus Christ, who 

has blessed us in the heavenly 

realms with every spiritual 

blessing in Christ.

   ..

Psalm 47:1 

Clap your hands, all you nations; 

shout to God with cries of joy. 

    ..

Psalm 31:19 

How great is your goodness, 

which you have stored up for 

those who fear you, which you 

bestow in the sight of men on 

those who take refuge in you.

     ..

Philippians 4:4 

Rejoice in the 

LORD

 always. I will 

say it again: Rejoice! 

      ..

I can hardly go into the next subject.

But I must:

It's about people, you and me. (We are on the black block with the person on it. I'll let you guess why it's black.) 

If you consider yourself a good person, think again.

Exodus 20:

3 “You shall have no other gods before me.

4 “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

7 “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.

8 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

12 “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.

13 “You shall not murder.

14 “You shall not commit adultery.

15 “You shall not steal.

16 “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

Have you kept the Ten Commandments? ALL OF THEM?

I think not. 

"But I haven't murdered anyone!" You say?

1 John 3:15 Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him.

"But I haven't committed adultery!" You say?

Matthew 5:28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

And we know we've all lied and we've all stolen. Whether or not it is a big lie or a little stolen thing, we have done it, and it is wrong. 

So if God made the law, knowing we could not keep it, why did He make it at all?

To show us how absolutely horrid we are.

To show us we aren't perfect.

To show us that He alone is good.

Now you ask, "If everyone has done everything wicked, how can God accept us?"

He can't.

How can I say that I know Him if I know He can't accept me?

Because of Jesus.

Jesus is represented by the red block with the cross on it.

God knew, before He even created the world, that we would sin. 

That is why He had a plan. Right from the start, He knew He would have to save us. Right from the start, Jesus knew He was going to have to die. All throughout the Bible, prophecies warn God's people what is going to happen. It wasn't just a spur of the moment decision for God to send Jesus down on earth to die. No, He knew all along.

Isaiah 53:4-6:

4 Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. 

5 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. 

6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

Knowing what would happen, Jesus still came on earth to die. 

What kind of crazy love is this? 

Think about it. You have offended a holy God, an action deserving of death. But you don't have to die, because Jesus Christ already died for you. This is an action God will accept as atonement, for Jesus lived a perfect life and is therefore a perfect sacrifice.

All we have to do is believe and repent of our sin and accept Jesus as our Lord. This brings us to the green block on the tract with the U-turn sign on it. 

Imagine you are on a road walking towards things that are sinful. Desires lead to temptations which lead to sin which leads to death. You are on the road to death. What are you going to do?

Make a simple U-turn.

Turning around, you see a glorious God who wants you to be part of His family. 

You have a choice between Life and death. What do you pick?

It is a weak and flawed analogy, but you understand the picture.

I can't save you. You can't save you. Your parents can't save you. Only God can save you. 

If God is calling you, don't ignore Him. 

.

.

.

I hope this helps you understand the Gospel more. I pray this will show you how much you need God. 

.

I must say, compared to all the trivial posts I've written in the past, this has been the most difficult blog post to write. It has certainly been a spiritual battle in finding time to write the truth. Every time I sat down this past week to write, something else came up, and I could not write.  

So thank God with me, that He helped me overcome all the little things and write His truth.

Hallelujah Amen!

An Award? For Me?

Hi Everyone! I have a bunch of posts pending in my brain right now, but as it is finals week, I have to postpone all of them due to wallowing in self - excuse me - studying my Chemistry...


But now that my final is over *relieved forehead swipe/sigh*

My dear friend Margaret has nominated me, as well as Claire and Kate, and another blogger named Bella, for a blogging award called the Liebster Blog Award.

Thank you so much!

Apparently, there are rules which I must recite:

#1 Thank and link back to the person who nominated you

#2 List 11 facts about yourself

#3 Answer the 11 questions asked by the blogger who nominated you

#4 Nominate 9 bloggers who have fewer than 200 followers (You can't nominate the person who nominated you)

#5 Ask them 11 questions

#6 Let them know about the nomination


Wow, that's quite a bit for a girl with such a small amount of time...But, I'll do my best :)

Rule #1 is complete so I'll move on to #2.

Fact One: I am a sinner saved by the grace of God.

Fact Two: I don't like making lists. But sometimes I do.

Fact Three: I'm addicted to Pinterest and Coffee.

Fact Four: I have a typewriter.

Fact Five: I like to write, sometimes by hand, sometimes on my typewriter, sometimes in my head, and sometimes on my computer.

Fact Six: I'm lazy, which is why I sometimes write in my head.

Fact Seven: I have a room laden with my own art work, my friend's art work, photographs, doodles, paper plates, Mardi Gras masks, a belt rack (which has belts white through brown, and when I'm a retired ninja I'll eventually hang my black one up there too), posters of myself, and a poster of Jack Sparrow.

Fact Eight: I correct grammar mistakes in my textbooks.

Fact Nine: I just realized that the headboard on my bed is a bookshelf, which means I don't have to take up one of my desks* for all my stacks of books.
*Yes I have two desks**
**Don't judge

Fact Ten: I like Norman Rockwell Calendars. I get the free ones at the drug store. Sometimes two different drugstores have two different versions of Norman Rockwell calendars, which explains why I have two different Norman Rockwell calendars on my wall...

Fact Eleven: My favorite flower is the yellow rose.


The next step is to answer the eleven questions Margaret asked me:

1. Favourite author? Lemony Snicket and/or Edgar Allen Poe

2. Cravats or bowties? Depends on who is wearing it ;)

3. Have you been to a foreign country? If so, which one(s)? Yes, I have been to Haiti, Canada, and Japan

4. Quote something off the top of your head. Cry God for Harry, England, and St. George!

5. Broadway or Hollywood? Broadway.

6. Do you like sushi? YESSSSSSS......

7.Thoughts on floor lamps? Floor lamps are great.

8. Do you enjoy chick flicks? (be honest;P) Well........sometimes. As long as it isn't a Disney Channel chick flick, and as long as it is funny, and as long as it isn't too sappy, and as long as it is clean (Verbally and Physically). My absolute favorite chick flick is Return to Me.
9. What is a hobby from your childhood you still retain? doodle-ee-doo-ing:

These are a few from my childhood:









And here are some from lately:











Whoops these are upside down...I'm not positive I know how to fix that:














Here are some notes I took in Chemistry class (shows how much I appreciate the subject...):





10. Does a PT6A have a multi-stage compressor?
This is what I thought of when I read the question:

           A Volkswagen Karmann Ghia has no
           radiator.
                         
           That's because it's air-cooled.

I don't know the answer to the original question, unless I googles it...Lemme do that:

..

..

..

Nope, looks like it only has a single stage compressor...

11. Beards or no beards? Once again, it depends on who it is on ;-P


Now that that is over, it is time to nominate 9 bloggers! Now, I don't actually follow nine bloggers (Who haven't already been nominated). So I'll nominate ALL THE FRIENDS! *Insert funny meme*

I nominate Cailean Williams, VociferousMime, Sunshyne, and Sarah. And those who have already been nominated by Margaret, whom I would have nominated as well, are Claire and Kate.

The questions I have for those of you I nominated are:

1.) What is your favorite kind of pie?

2.) If you were ruler of the universe, what laws would you make?

3.) What's your favorite joke?

4.) Donuts or Bagels?

5.) List your favorite words.

6.) If you had a theme song (like Darth Vader does) what would it be? (If you can't think of a specific song, what genre would it be?)

7.) Would you rather have a big house or little house? Why?

8.) What is something you are proud of?

9.) What is something you are embarrassed about?

10.) Who is your fantasy crush?

11.) What is the most bazaar thing that has ever happened to you?


Now, I'm off to tell you that you have been nominated!!!

Thanks so much for the nomination Maggie <3

World Views

So I am in a World View class this semester. My final is to write a paper. Yippy Skippy, I love papers :)

I do believe that this applies to my month of truth 1.) Because Biblical Christianity is truth, as well as a world view; 2.) As Sunshyne said in the comments on my last post, personal opinion is not always truth. Worldviews are opinions held by people and are not always true. It is not up to us to define what truth is. What is our standard? God. We must evaluate the world around us by His standard.

Also, I want constructive criticism on my paper before I turn it in on Tuesday (May 6th)...It isn't supposed to be a fancy MLA paper. I would like you to judge it on grammar and logic. Please and thank you, all you grammar nerds out there:)



Here you go:

World Views

There are so many different world views in the world. In this class I learned about six main views held by most of the world, Biblical Christianity, Islam, Secular Humanism, Marxist Leninism, Cosmic Humanism, and Post Modernism.

A worldview is the way one looks at the world. It is the colored glasses which filter the world one sees. A worldview answers the questions: Where did we come from? Where are we going? And, why are we here?

The worldview of Biblical Christianity answers these questions in this way:

Where did we come from?

All the world and everyone in it were created by God the Father, who is omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, holy, true, loving, just, graceful, merciful, eternal, wrathful, and  independent of space, time, and matter.

Where are we going?

Everyone in the world is going to hell after they have lived their selfish and idolatrous lives unless they have been called by God to be saved from His wrath through the intercession of His Son, Jesus Christ, who died so we do not have to, because of our sins. If God chose us, only then do we have forgiveness and are able to spend eternity in heaven with Him.

Why are we here?

Our purpose as a race and as individuals is to glorify Him, to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ, and to live with Him forever in eternal adoration.

Islamic worldview answers these questions as follows:

Where did we come from?

Allah created the world and all that is in it. Muslims believe Allah and the God of the Bible are one in the same.

Where are we going?

Muslims are going to either Jannah or Jahannam, depending on how well they have lived. They must keep the five pillars of Islam (Say the Shahada, pray five ritualistic prayers a day, pay charity tax, fast the month of Ramadhan, and have at least one pilgrimage to Mecca in their lifetime) if they want to go to Jannah. If they don’t keep the five pillars, they go to Jahannam.

Why are we here?

Surrender, submit, obey, in purity and peace to Allah, carrying out his orders and staying in some form of worship to him as much as possible-That is the purpose of the Muslim life.

The Secular Humanism worldview answers thusly:

Where did we come from?

Darwinian Evolution. They believe evolution is factual. Man was not planned by any supreme deity.

Where are we going?

Man is constantly evolving to a higher state of perfection. Socialism will be the way that man will have complete control over the universe. Socialism will be the next step in evolution for man to become a better social being.

Why are we here?

Globalism. We are evolving to a higher level of being and society. Secular Humanism does not focus on  cosmic meaning, rather, what moral purpose can man fulfill here and now, as well as, how to better further society.

Marxist-Leninism worldview also answers these three questions:

Where did we come from?

Mankind evolved. Marxist-Leninists leaped for joy when Darwin wrote the Origin of Species. Evolution disparages humans, which is the communistic goal-the many ruled by the few.

Where are we going?

We are headed to a higher state of Communism. Everything that furthers the perfection of the state is outstanding.

Why are we here?

We are here to advance the society towards Communism.

Cosmic Humanism’s answers to these questions are:

Where did we come from?

We evolved and are still evolving.

Why are we here?

We are here to evolve into an elite collective consciousness. We are all gods (or are all god-“Pantheism-all god”). The cosmos calls us into divine realizations about our respective deities. Life is about finding ourselves, meditating, and treating everything, which is spiritual, as god.

There are no standards, since god is the highest standard, and we are all god we can set our own standards. We can judge ourselves, since we set our own standard, but we can’t judge others, because they have their own set of standards. Everything is relative to the individual, yet since the cosmos directs us gods into our higher state of spirituality, then everything is all good.

Where are we going?

We are all evolving into a higher (god) consciousness. This is also called Collective Evolution, when enough individuals become highly elite they will draw others into their highly developed consciousness.

The worldview of Post Modernism answers the questions in this way:

Where did we come from?

Wherever you want to be.

Why are we here?

Whyever you want to be.

Where are we going?

Wherever you want to go.

 

What I learned from this class is that I am grateful to be a child of God. Other religions might have a god, but they don’t have a Savior.

Every worldview, excepting Christianity, is dependent on man’s own actions to get to heaven, or whatever better place they believe in. I think it is a rather hopeless case for them. For man continually strives for betterment, but how can he think he will attain it? No other man has accomplished this feat. It is impossible. We live in a sinful world.

One can try to live for a purpose. One can try to gain acceptance into heaven. One can try to please a god. But no one can ever succeed in any of their pursuits because of our fallen world.

Only God can give us perfection, for He is the ONLY standard of perfection. No matter what we do, we cannot be like God. God gives us the strength to better ourselves. We cannot.

Only a person who has been saved by the God of the Bible can enter into the kingdom of heaven. Because that person is not depending on his own actions to get a ticket to paradise, but he is depending on Jesus Christ’s actions, He who lived a perfect life and died a perfect death, to allow him to go spend eternity with God.