Purity

If you’ve been reading this blog for more than 2 months you probably know that i just recently found out about the Jonas Brothers. and i really like them now.

I have been doing some research about them and (you might already know this. but give me a break. im a *new* fan) found out they wear purity rings. And it seems like all disney artists are wearing them too.

This is awesome.

Im glad kids are listening to a different message.

But im afraid that purity is becoming a trend.

Something that’s in.

Now, that is a good thing. But im afraid that people are taking pledges to remain pure without really knowing what *purity* really means.

Purity is not a trend. Purity is a treasure

I’ve wanted to wear a purity -something- (ring, necklace, brazalete…) for a long time but have never done it for some reason. I think im going to start wearing one before going to Africa. I really think that it would generate spiritual convos over there.

I dont know… I just hope the JBros dont mess up.

This is purity for me-

But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality… Ephesians 5:3a

What does it mean for you?

FLF- What donkey?

Today my mom is mad at me.

If you know me. You probably know how much that fact disturbs me.

But im fine today. Because i actually think she is wrong

Moving on!

I know God never changes. But for some reason i always thought the OT God wouldn’t hang out with Jesus. (im sorry. This is messed up theology. i know)

But then i found this-

“If you come across your enemy‘s ox or donkey wandering off, be sure to take it back to him”. Exodus 23: 4

For me this is the OT version of

“Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you”. Matthew 5:44

His LOVE will never change.

EVER-

Who’s your enemy today?
Identify his donkey, and
be sure to take it back to him….

Have a great friday!

What do women want?

I hate to say  this but this question is a really hard one to answer. Even for women.  I will do my best to explain what we really want in this post.

I came up with three things

1- We want our man to lead us spiritually- I think this is a big one. Even for non-believers. Im sure they dont call it that but deep inside women long for someone to follow. We want someone who loves us enough to protect out hearts, souls and minds by setting limits. We want him to  lead the way. We want him to be the one who initiates prayer times and start spiritual convos.

2- We want our man to be vulnerable- We want to know you trust us enough to get emotionally naked and be sure that we will love you just the same. we will.

3- We want to be told you love us- For some women this is by receiving gifts, or through quality time, or words of affirmation. It depends on her love language BUT one thing’s for sure. We need to be constantly reminded that you love us.

now, im sure there’s a lot of other things we want. But i think these are key and every women will agree.

now lets play a fun game. But i need all of you to participate. I want the girls reading this to add things to my 3-item list, say something women want that i didnt come up with. And Boys! what do you want?

set. Ready… GO!

Girls- What do women want?

Boys- WHAT DO YOU WANT?

Codependency and “Missionary” Dating-

Last weekend i had a hard conversation with a friend of mine. He is precious and I love him very much.

He is dating a beautiful almost-perfect non christian girl.

And this broke my heart

I remember this guy being so in love with Jesus. So involved at his church. So involved in fellowship with other believers and building up relationships with godly men. I remember him sharing his faith whenever he had a chance to. I remember this guy following Jesus.

I sat with him this weekend.

And i saw a guy who is in love with a girl.  spends all his time with her. when he’s not with her he’s thinking about her. If he’s not thinking about her he’s probably talking to her on the phone. This guy lost his friendships with godly men -not because his friends wernt there for him. But because he didnt care for them anymore-. This guy is not spending time with God. He is not sharing his faith. He is starting to get bitter. He is hurting. He is alone.

I told him what he needed to hear.

He hated me for a few seconds. I saw it in his eyes. But then he thanked me.

Im not sure if he is going to end that relationship. He really loves her.

But im afraid he is loving her more than he is loving God.

And that is never. NEVER. A good thing.

I hurt for him. Not only because he is alone right now (that is a big part of my concern) But mostly because the girl he is inlove with does not know His saviour. Im sure that sucks.

This is a sad post.
Because this makes me very sad.

THOUGHTS?

FLF

Today i just want to talk about a simple principle that is applicable to every situation in life.

“You cant help those who dont want to be helped”

You cant make them stop sinning.

You cant make them focus.

You cant make them read their Bible.

You cant make them a budget.

You cant organize their lifes.

You cant buy them more hours.

You cant fix their relationships.

You cant get them a job.

You cant!
Not if deep inside they really dont want to make adjustments in their lifes. You can share all your knowledge/experiences/testimonies with them or you could even set an example for them to follow. But if they dont want to. Boy! they just wont.

This is frustrating.

But my guess is you are only responsible  for what YOU do/say/think. What others do/say/think is really not your responsibility. You can set an example for them  But if they dont respond to it in a positive way. I would say you are out of it. Its their deal!

What do you think?

While you think. I will leave you with a little treasure i found. It’s been out there for a while now.I knew it was there. I just never took the time to listen.

I even have a friend who looks just like one of these three kids.

Where was I?

They even came to Venezuela and i missed them.

DARN it.
Same thing happened with the Backstreet boys. I discovered them a little too late.

Confession: I like the Jonas Brothers. Taylor Swift. And Miley Cirus

I might be a little too old to like them. But i do. so, shut up/

Have a great weekend.

Oh Oh OH! i almost forget!

What are your plans for valentines day?

: )

What im reading…

A good friend of mine, my leader, and my mentor, once told me to stop reading books about love and relationships.

I respect him.

So I Did.

For about a year.

He was right. I was thinking too much about it. And swallowing way too much information. Im glad i stopped. It helped me focus on THE  ultimate Book. The Bible.

But i picked this book up yesterday. My good friend Jyll – also one of my mentors-  gave this to me 2 years ago for my birthday. And as i started reading it again last night. The thoughts i had 2 years ago  came to mind and seemed so bizarre.

Let me break this down for you.

Two years ago i felt slapped in the face. As the writer described single women and the common mistakes they often make…. or should i say “we”? yeah… The mistakes WE often make.

But last night. I didn’t feel like that at all. I felt rather affirmed.

AND It scared the heck out of me!

I dont really know why. But it did

I had highlighted this: “Fourth, your marriage will only be as successful as your single life. Nurture wholeness where you are”

two years ago my thought was: My boyfriend/future husband will complete me. I will not be whole until i meet him.

My thought last night was: I am complete in You, Lord.

Needless to say, i was wrong two years ago.

suddenly the words in that book were not correcting my behavior anymore. They were encouraging me to keep doing what im already doing. And yes, it was a little scary but at the same time refreshing and liberating.

I am whole. I have found joy, contentment, hope, peace, love and even entertainment in my relationship with Jesus. I need nothing else. Dont get me wrong! i still want to get married and raise godly children. It’s one of my deepest desires. But Marriage is not an idol anymore. It used to be.

Im glad i realized that last night.

I will finish up that book one more time. But this time i wont be looking for answers.

BONUS

I have learned one thing over the past few days.

There is no point on getting mad at the people you love.

It is a waste of time.

Really!

When you get mad at someone. It doesnt affect them. It affects you. It makes YOU sad. It makes YOU grumpy.

Not them.
Actually, if you dont speak out. They wont even know you are mad.

Im just saying that it is always better to forgive and forget

Dont throw your relationships out the window. Not every single thing you dislike is a reason to argue.

If there is one thing i want my friends and family to say about me is:

She’s graceful. And forgiving.

Are you being graceful and forgiving?

Im not. But im trying.

Always keep in mind that God is graceful and forgiving.

Who are we not to do the same for others?

It is all about selflessness.

:)

Last night i had my share of quality time. I went out with a group of friends and just talked and talked for two good hours. I left that place with a big smile on my face.

ah! i love having friends. Im the kind of person who has various groups of friends. I have the high-school friends. College friends. Church friends. work friends. and French-class friends. And i love them all!

After being stuck in the house since last sunday i really needed to go out and “see the world”.

It was worth it. It was different.

Last night i went to bed knowing that everything is right with the world. I am comfortable with who i am. My life is somehow perfect right now. There is nothing else i need. I think i have never felt like this before- ever.

I am ready to grow up.
Move forward
And enjoy what God has planned.

Because today.
Today is just the first day of the rest of my life.

🙂

My LOVE language [Parte DOS]

Ok. I cant stop thinking about my love language.

And it just HIT me.

This is the way i relate to God. It is the way i show Him i love Him.

I spend time with Him.

That is why i struggle SO much with quiet time. When i dont sit down and spend quality time with Him i feel like im not loving Him.

tricky, huh?!

Oh! the things you learn about yourself….

I like this though.

I LOVE the fact that having a quiet time is not just a ritual in my day but an act of love and worship. While i sit down with a cup of tea (yes, tea is mandatory) and with an open Bible i feel (and He knows because He made me this way) on my highest level of love. yes. si!

I am amazed by this.

I LOVE IT.

what about you? how do you feel like you are loving God the most?

BONUS

SEE how much i love you -my readers-? Im writing a BONUS post on a friday!

I have a raw idea of what i want to say… Ill do my best to develop it as a write. It’s how i roll/ If i wait. I loose it.

where do i start?

uhm..

Disclaimer: I dont usually write about this. Not because i dont want to but because it is just not the purpose of this blog. But what im feeling right now is well worth blogging about.

If you’ve spent some time with me. You probably know that i dont hide what i feel. Sometimes i wish i could hide my feelings and just keep my mouth shut. But i just cant. Sometimes im proud of it. Sometimes im ashamed of it. It depends.

the thing is… Oh man, i cant believe im really going to write this on a public blog.

He is funny. He is not very good at telling jokes but for some reason they make me laugh. he gets all excited if i laugh when anyone else is. He is cute. He is mature with a little sparkle of immatureness. He is taller than me. He is a gentleman. He thinks about marriage a lot. More than anyone around him knows. He has a neat bed and a very organized tiny room. He knows how to match his dress pants with the right shirt. He can clean the floor like any one i know. He is protective. He opens the door for girls. He is a faithful and caring friend. He is shy.

He is head-over-hills in love with Jesus. He keeps a journal. He is one of the best christians i’ve met. He is humble and genuine. He has guy friends. He has a servant’s heart. He actually reads his bible and lives it. He looks right into my eyes.

But he walks out the room whenever our conversations get interesting.

crap.

too good to be true.

Marriage-

Now, i am not an expert on this subject. I am as clueless as someone who is not married and has -almost- never dated anyone.

But i was talking to my favorite girl in the whole wide world the other day (*M) and she asked me if there was an example of a godly marriage in the Bible. we both agreed that there had to be one but we didnt know where to find it.

As many of you know i started NEWthru30 yestarday. (reading the New testament in 30 days)

and i think i found the couple *M and i were looking for.

Mary and Joseph

Here’s what Matthew has to say

The Birth of Jesus Christ

¹⁸This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

²⁰But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.²¹She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,^[c] because he will save his people from their sins.”

²²All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ²³“The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”^[d]—which means, “God with us.”

²⁴When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.²⁵But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus. Matthew 1:18-24

Here are some of my thoughts…

1- Protection <v. 19>

Joseph longed to protect his bride. no-matter-what. He was willing to divorce her quietly -even if she had cheated on him- because he didnt want to dishonor her.

2- God’s voice <v.20/ v.24>

Joseph heard the voice of God. Now, that is the man we want to spend the rest of our lives with… He heard the voice of God and more importantly. He obeyed.

3- Holiness <v.25>

Joseph and Mary kept themselves pure until the time was right.

I love Mary’s attitude though
She does nothing. She only waits and prays (im sure…)

Now, as a woman i know what was going through her mind. I know exactly the thoughts she was having to deal with. Oh! i know! But she decides to be still and trust God to bring her man back to her. She doesnt call him, go talk to his parents, facebook him, or manipulates him. She lets God do His job.

ah! She’s my hero! lol

This passage tells us how to deal with conflict while in a relationship

SEEK GOD. LISTEN. OBEY James 4:17

Im sure it’s not easy, and im sure some of us were expecting more out of the Holy Book when it comes to relationships. But the truth is… This is enough. This is it. And it applies to every little single aspect in out lives…

Seek God. Listen. And then, Obey!