Jesus > Society

         I've been wanting to write this blog for some time now, but I wanted to get my thoughts completely organized before I did. Where my heart is in writing this comes from personal experiences, as well as things I've seen and heard about. It goes without saying that especially as teenagers, and young adults, society can have a HUGE influence on us, and the choices we make. Society says "Sex before marriage is okay, everyone does it." Society says "Come play beer pong with us, everyone else will be there." Society tells us that anything everyone else does is okay. But just because everyone else does it, does not make it right in God's eyes.

          I'm going to get right into it, because this subject is going to kind of serve as the main topic of discussion: Premarital sex. 1 Thessalonians 4:3-5 -"ye should abstain from fornication (sexual intercourse between two consenting people who are not married to each other): that every one of you should know how to possess his vessel on sanctification and honor; not in the lust of concupiscence" (powerful feelings of physical desire). As teenagers, hormones are raging, and we have feelings and urges. But as I've stated in previous blogs, feelings are not bad; how we deal with them can be. 

         With the greatness of God, and his Love, forgiveness, peace, holiness, and grace, there is an evil that wants us to fail. God wants us to be great; he wants us to prosper. He wants us to be the BEST version of ourselves. But evil wants us to utterly and completely fail, to hurt, and to ruin the plan that God has for our lives. In wanting us to abstain from sex until we have entered the covenant of marriage, he is doing so to better serve our lives, not to punish us. 1 Corinthians 10:13 -"God is Faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able;" (God will NOT let you be tempted more than you can handle)

          Society tells boys that visiting a strip club when they enter adulthood is "what everyone does. It's normal." But strip clubs have sin written all over them. They are one of the many temptations out there that are waiting for us to fail. Because what are boys gaining from it? Lust. Matthew 5:28 -"But I say unto you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery." Guys, let me ask you something. If you have a good girl by your side, who KNOWS her self worth, who has inner beauty, who would do anything for you, you have the best of the best right there. So why would you want the lowest of the low somewhere else? You're idolizing a female who has low -if any self-esteem, no idea of her self worth, no love for you, or any other boy she's filling desires for, but that's what pleasures you? What does that say about how you view yourself? And I am not saying that if you're single, it's different. Because again, any form of sex was created for the pleasure between two married people. Society says "everyone has a stripper at their bachelor/bachelorette party!" I have always said that when I'm about to get married, I DO NOT want a stripper at my bachelorette party. If my friends don't respect that, and a stripper shows up, I will leave. It's not fun, it's not classy, it's not enjoyable, and it's not me. It's the same concept I stated with strip clubs. In 1 Corinthians 7:8-9, Paul says "for it is better to marry than to burn."

         This is just a stem from that topic; as far as I'm aware, most of society agrees that cheating on your partner is disgusting, and plenty of other adjectives we don't need to get into, but unfortunately, it happens. I've seen SO many people go through being cheated on, so I wanted to talk about it a little bit. You may think it's "cool" to talk to a lot of people at once, and see how many you can get to crush on you, or how many people you can "hook up" with. I'm definitely not the first one to say that it's not. The Seventh Commandment bluntly states "Thou shalt not commit adultery." Proverbs 6:32 -"whoever committeth adultery lacks understanding, and destroys his own soul." In my opinion, that verse says it all. 

          Society says "Come to this party and drink with all of us!" I'm not going to get into a spiel about how drugs and alcohol are bad; I'm sure you've all heard plenty in school and such, but I will say that drinking, especially underage does not put you at a higher ranking than anyone else. Ephesians 5:18 -"Don't be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life. Instead, let the Holy Spirit fill you." Mind you, wine was what they called alcohol in general. 

        I did not write this to seem like a goody-two-shows by any means. I follow our creator who is a GREAT God, and I have views on things that I KNOW most people don't agree with...because I'm not agreeing with society. 

Prayers&Positivity

Becka 

        

          

Dealing with Anger

        We've all heard the saying, "Anger is one letter away from 'danger'". A couple of years ago [and sometimes to this day], I can get pretty nasty when I get extremely angry. I've stated in previous blogs that I have a BAD habit of bottling everything up over time. When I get angry, there's a 50/50 chance that I will uncontrollably release it. I talked with a mentor of mine, because I knew that the amount of anger I sometimes experienced was not healthy, and it made me feel like a horrible person. He said something that I still take to heart: "emotions are not bad, how you deal with them can be."

          It is more than normal for us to get angry. We have feelings and emotions, and sometimes people and things can influence them. In Matthew 5:44, God says, "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you." It has taken me a long time to understand this verse fully, and I completely understand that it is not the easiest thing for us to always do.

          We are often left feeling guilty, defeated, and upset when something has brought us to where we let our negative emotions get the best of us. At the bare minimum, apologize. Some people will get swallowed up with pride, and don't want to seem weak, or lose their dignity; but in reality, you are being strong, and being the bigger person to admit your faults. "Apologizing doesn't always mean you are wrong and the other person is right; it means you value the relationship more than your ego." And in many situations, there may not be someone who is "right", but someone should DO the right thing and apologize. The other person may not accept it, but you can walk away knowing you did the right thing.

        Matthew 6:14 -"for if ye forgive men their trespasses, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you." We all make mistakes, and especially in arguing with another person, whether we think we are right or not, both individuals have fallen guilty to the same thing. We are both in a negative state of mind, and have spoken words we do not mean. You cannot hold someone accountable for making a mistake that you have also made. 

          Several times in the Bible, God states that He calls us to Love. He wants us to forgive, and he wants us to have peace. I not only pray for my enemies, but I also pray for peace in my heart as well, and I pray that God takes my anger away; luckily for me, I do not stay angry for very long.

            When you pray for your enemies, you are taking away their power, and giving your strain to God. God wants to, and WILL fight our battles for us, but we need to call upon His name. Let God be in control of whatever situation is burdening you, and give your worries to Him. If you're reading this and thinking "she must be out of her mind", I know, I thought the SAME thing two years ago, but I PROMISE you, that you will feel relief. John 14:14 -"if he shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it." God wants us to be set free, and again, he wants us to Love. But we cannot Love until we let go of anger.

Prayers&Positivity

Becka