Tree of Life

At my school, we have a bible study called First Priority. Every week we have someone else present, or give their testimony. One of my close friends presented this week, and it was so good that I asked of I could use it on my blog. She said "Yes" and she gave me her notes, so I could write what she said. So all the credit, words and drawings, goes to my friend today.

So many of us see our self as not good enough. We either are judged, we have our fears, or we are afraid of public speaking. Our fear is caused by sin. Adam and Eve ate from the forbidden tree in the middle of the garden. This is the root of all of our sins. Then God sent his Son down to earth to die on a cross. A cross is a dead tree cut of from it's roots. When Jesus died on the cross, he saved us and separated us from our sin, that has taken root in our life.

Now Satan still wants us, but Romans 5:8 says, "But God demostrates His own love for us in this: While we still be sinners, Christ died for us." God loves us and Jesus is the way to God. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation: the old has gone, the new has come!" When we accept Jesus, we become like him, a new creation. Romans 12:2 says, "Do not conform any longer to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is-his good, pleasing, and perfect will." When we renew our minds, we go from being a creepy crawler thing of this earth and Satan, into a beautiful butterfly like God.

Thanks for reading. My friend was proud of her speech and it is truly inspirational.

Sources:
"Tree Of Life." First Priority. High School. 24 Apr. 2013. Speech.
True Images Bible. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2007. Print

Giving Up Our Worries

Many teenagers worry about how they look, test that are coming up, and dating. But what if I tell you that you can let go of all your worries. When you lay down your worries at the feet of Jesus, then He will take care of them. To show you an example, let's take my tenth grade personal project.
I attend an IB high school. (IB = International Baccalaureate, includes Middle Years Program for ninth and tenth graders, and Diploma Program for eleventh and twelfth graders.) This is a high school course that some high schools around the world offer and it helps give college credits. For tenth graders, or the last year of the MYP program, there is a Personal Project. This is where we get to choose our topic, do research, create a product, and present the project to a panel of judges. At the end there is a completion ceremony. Last year, when I was a freshman, I went to the completion ceremony to get some project ideas. The only thing I remember was that some of the tenth graders gave speeches about their projects. I thought it was cool have some of the students speak, and I wanted to do it for my completion ceremony. The problem was that I didn't know how they were chosen. I remember praying to God about how I so wanted to get up there and present. Then this year I went to work on my project. I had the completion ceremony in the back of my mind but I didn't worry about it, because God will have me present if it was His will for me. The next thing I know, I got a amazing grade on my project, and a letter saying that I was presenting at the completion ceremony. I was surprised and I could not stop thanking God for giving me the opportunity to present my project. I put my worries on Him and I trusted him, and He showed me His will for my life. That night I went up to speak, and I had confidence in myself. I spoke clearly enough so people could hear me, and I didn't stumble with my words. Also, I didn't fall on my face on stage, which is always a plus.
This is just one example of giving your worries to God. If you give your worries about dating to God, He will show you who to date. Give your worries about a test to God, He will give you confidence in yourself on the test. Last, if you give your worries on how you look to God, He will show the beauty within, and He will show you how He sees you. Just trust God and give all your worries to Him and he will take care of them for you. So what worries can you give up today, and give to God?

Healing

With everything that has been going on this week, from the Boston bombings to the Texas explosion, I think we all could use some encouraging songs. If you weren't affected by this then please pray for those involved.

"Before The Morning" Josh Wilson
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=New8i_eX3x8
"Praise You In The Storm" Casting Crowns
http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=WDK7KLNX
"Blessings" Laura Story
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CSVqHcdhXQ
"Cry Out To Jesus" Third Day
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmVxRl5bc4Y
"He Said" Group 1 Crew
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lmi9IBP209s


Sources:
Wilson, Josh. "Josh Wilson - Before The Morning (Official Music Video)." YouTube. Emimusic, 06 Aug. 2010. Web.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=New8i_eX3x8
Crowns, Casting. "Casting Crowns - Praise You In This Storm(Live) Music Videos." GodTube. Casting Crowns, Oct. 2011
"Third Day-Cry Out To Jesus." Youtube. ThirdDayVevo, 24 Oct. 2009. Web. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmVxRl5bc4Y>.
Story, Laura. "Laura Story - Blessings." YouTube. LoveOneAnother2011, 02 Mar. 2011. Web.
Group1Crew. "Group 1 Crew- "He Said (feat. Chris August)" (Official Music Video)." YouTube. N.p., 18 July 2012. Web.

Already There

So this weekend I was watching "The Bible" with my family. We were on vacation, and catching up on work so we haven't seen it in a while. We watched where Jesus was born, and him calling his first disciples. There was a scene where Jesus and his family walked to Galilee and saw people who were crucified. Mary did her best to hide Jesus's eyes from it all. I was sitting in my chair thinking how Jesus was going to be a cross one day. I was thinking of all that Jesus would have to go through that he didn't completely know or understand. Mary and Joshep didn't have the slightest idea of what Jesus would go through at all too.

Afterwards, I got ready for bed and I started thinking. God is like that in our lives. He knows everything we will do that we don't have a slightest idea of yet. This reminded me of a song by Casting Crowns, "Already There". They talk about how God is already at the end of our life and he knows our every step, our every breath, and our every thought. My favorite line from the song is "One day I'll stand before you, and look back at the life I've lived. I can't wait to enjoy the view and see how all the pieces fit." I imagine looking back on my life and seeing how all of the troubles I have went through have fit together. This is important to remember after what happened in Boston on Monday. None would have thought that there would be bombs there, but God did. Even though He knew about it, but didn't stop it, was because He gave us the power of free will, and not made us act as robots. Adam and Eve used their free will poorly and sinned, which brings destruction, and darkness, and bombs. But God is still there though it all, and He knows all the things you will do to recover and move past this. Remember, one day we will be able to stand with him and see how all the pieces fit.

Here is the song by Casting Crowns, and as you listen to it take comfort in it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qtg9axTtNLg

Sources:
Crowns, Casting. "Casting Crowns - Already There (Official Lyric Video)." YouTube. CastingCrowns, 10 Jan. 2013. Web.

Untitled

You can see that I haven’t put a title to this post. I'm doing this because there is not one overall idea that can be taken from this post. I want you to get what you need to get out of this post. I don't want to tell you what you should get. With that please enjoy!

I love Christian music, and how there is always something more you can get then just an bunch of lyrics and a beat. Today I'm going to talk about a couple of my favorite songs. The first one is "What Faith Can do" by Kutless, and the other one is "The Words I Would say" by Sidewalk Prophets. Now these are two songs by two different artists, but they are the same in many ways. first of all the way they write their lyrics. They both wrote their lyrics as if they were talking to you in person. Sidewalk Prophets say in the beginning, "And I started writing just what I'll say if we were face to face." It is clear that he is talking to whoever is listening. Kutless isn't that forward with their song but they talk in first person and say "You" a lot which is the same thing. Also, they didn't specify what group of people they are writing to. So that can mean anyone: from the poorest person to the richest pop star, from bikers to beauty queens, and from Americans to Russians to Germans. They are really writing to you where ever you are, and whatever you do.

Also, they have a lot of lyrics in common. For example, Kutless says "Hope that doesn't ever end, even when the sky is falling." and Sidewalk Prophets say "Never give up hope." So from these two songs, we get a mention of hope from then chorus, and how strong hope is even when you are going through the toughest days.

Another part where the two songs are talking about the same thing is when Kutless says, "It doesn't matter what you've heard, impossible is not a word. It's just a reason for someone not to try." and where Sidewalk Prophets say, "His love will find a way." If you were to put the line that is said by Sidewalk Prophets and the end of what Kutless said, then it completes thought. Combined it is saying that nothing is impossible because God's love will find a way. So if you think that what you are going through is impossible to get out, then turn to God and ask him to pull you out.

The last big part where the songs are similar is when Kutless says, "Silent prayers get answered." and where Sidewalk Prophets say, "I want you to know that I will keep on praying love will find you where you are." and "Take your time and pray." This just goes to show you how important prayer is. Whatever you need, or are going through, remember to pray. Whether it be those silent prayers or the long lengthy ones, God loves to hear them all.

So please take time to look at what I said. If you have time, look up the videos on YouTube to hear the full songs.

Sources.
Frey, McDonald, and Mizell. "The Words I Would Say." Rec. 2009. Sidewalk Prophets. Ian Eskelin, n.d. CD.
Davis, Scott, and Scott Krippayne. "What Faith Can Do." Rec. 2009. Kutless. Tyson Paoletti, n.d. CD.

Mistakes

Now it is a common fact of life that we all make mistakes. But our mistakes don't define us. What define us is how we handle our mistakes. You can either make a big deal about it or completely forget about it, or you can learn from them and move on. Mistakes can come in any sizes. But from every mistake there is a lesson you can learn, no matter how small the mistake is. For example, I had a little mishap with frozen yogurt. I was in New York with my school, to compete at Carnegie Hall. My friends and I had some free time, and since I haven't had frozen yogurt before, they made it their mission for me to have some before we left New York. So we walked to the closest frozen yogurt shop, and as soon as we were inside they left to get their yogurt, and left me to fend for myself. They didn't tell me about how you pay by the ounce, so I got a little carried away with my yogurt and toppings. At the end, I ended up paying about 12 dollars for frozen yogurt. That day I learned many lessons.
1) You don't need to fill the bowl all the way to the top.
2) Everything is more expensive in New York.
3) Make sure your friends tell you everything about where you are going before you go.
4) Make sure you know the price of what you are spending before you pay with your own money.

Now, this was a little mistake, but there was still lessons I can learn from it. Everyone of us is growing and learning everyday, and a way we grow is by learning from our mistakes. So please learn from your mistakes to help you grow and not make the same mistakes again. If you can learn from others mistakes, then that can prevent you from making the same mistakes especially if you can learn before you can ruin your life. So next time you make a mistake, take time to learn something from it.

P.S. My $12.00 frozen yogurt was really good and took me two hours to eat. :)

The Constant

Here is a video I made about who God is through the eyes of math. I pray that you will watch and enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QoIrhjxC1A&feature=youtu.be

Hebrews 13:8 "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever."

Sources:
Frye, Kaitlyn. "The Constant." Youtube. Jonasfan3jb, 05 Apr. 2013. Web.

True Images Bible. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2007. Print

Family

Family is a big part of my life. I mean I see them pretty much every day of my life. I live with my mom and dad and my younger brother, my two cats, Oreo and Whisker, and our dog Dexter. Now I am lucky that I have such a loving family with both parents. But not everyone has that. Some people have divorced families, or blended families. Some siblings don't get along to the point where they don't talk to each other. My family does have it's share of fights and empty threats, but in the end we are family. Family is a safe place to go and no matter what you do, they are there for you. So don't take what ever family you do have for granted because one day they might not be there for you.