Don't Follow Your Heart

Ever receive the advice to "follow your heart?" I hear this advice given to heroines in romance movies when they are not able to decide which man they should choose to be with. But the Bible says, in Jeremiah 17:9, that "The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?" Kind of scary, right? Jesus says to follow Him when making big - or small - decisions. My heart has fooled me several times when I listened to its leading. I think I will not follow my heart but will follow Jesus, He has yet to disappoint me. 

Friend Forever

One of my favorite songs right now is called 'All My Hope' by Hillsong. One of the lyrics that stand out today to me from that song is 'friend forever', and 'friend' is referred to Jesus in this song. I think that it's amazing that the God of the universe, the Holy God, the Lord of lords wants to be my friend and that he actually is my friend. Not only is He the only way to the Father but He is also my friend. What amazing fellowship we're given in God. He truly is our everything, this is why I can say that I am never, ever alone and mean it 100% at all times without any hesitation. It means that I can come to Him at anytime and tell Him how I feel, ask for His help, take the time to praise Him and thank Him, or just sit and bask in His presence. My dear friend, God is gracious and He wants to spend time with you, too. Remove all the religious stuff from your heart that deceives you into thinking that you're not good enough to come to Him or you didn't do enough works. You are not saved by works but by grace, because the Bible reminds us that no one is righteous except God. The only thing that makes you righteous - if you are a follower of Jesus Christ - is the blood of Jesus that washed away all your sins. So go to Him, tell Him how you feel. He is a lot kinder than we realize. Here is the link to the song: All My Hope. 

Discretion of a Lady

About six or seven years ago, while getting myself pampered at a spa, I read an article that changed my life. It was meant to be a simple beauty tip for the modern woman; the author eloquently stated that women these days did not use enough discretion when it came to their beautifying regiments.  For example, the author felt that if you were going to do a green facial mask at night you should never let your husband see you in that rather unattractive state. She advised for us to use discretion and to try to let the men in our lives think that our beauty was effortless to help keep the romance alive. She went on to say that this is what most of the women did in the 1950's and 1960's and she felt that we as women in the 21st century needed to be a little bit more that way if we wanted to be treated like ladies. Though I did not have a husband, I put the advice into practice in my own way and made sure to never talk about my beauty tricks in front of my guy friends or men I was involved with romantically, and this quickly became a lifetime habit. This habit also helped me to remember to use better discretion in other parts of my life and I believe the reason this advice was so effective was because it reflected God's truth. "As a ring of gold in a swine's snout so is a beautiful woman who lacks discretion." Proverbs 11:22

Riding a Bike in the Breeze

I took a bike ride for the first time in a long time over the weekend with a friend. We rode all over my local park and the nearby streets that were decorated by old trees fully dressed in rich, bright green foliage. It was such an enjoyment to ride a bike with the warm sun rays warming my skin, the slight breeze touching my face, and the pleasant aroma of flowers filling my senses.  I loved the simple joys of life. 

Talking to Yourself

If you're looking to be fed by some good, balanced, honest, non-condemning, on point preaching, I highly recommend checking out the sermons by pastors Jim Cymbala and Tim Dilena from Brooklyn Tabernacle church.  If you are suffering with depression or you just can't shake a sad feeling, I suggest you listen to the sermon titled "Talking to Yourself", here's the link: Brooklyn Tabernacle Sermons. I hope and pray you are blessed and rejuvenated by these sermons. 

Thy Kingdom Come

The Colosseum - where thousands of Christians were raveged by lions for Roman entertainment

When I think about all of the sad things that happen in this world, I feel overwhelmed. When I think about the little boys and girls who are forced into sex slavery, my heart breaks and all I want to do is cry and pray for them. When I think about all the Christians around the world that are being thrown into hard core prisons just for running Bible studies, sadness grips my heart. When I see just how raunchy the so called PG-13 movies and TV shows have become, I turn off my television in disgust and disappointment. Things just keep getting worse and worse these days. But when I turn my eyes to Jesus and remember that this world is temporary and that it has an end date, my hope is restored and I long for the day when Jesus will reign and there will be justice on the earth and there will be no more children being abused, and people will be able to praise God in public without fear, and we will not have to worry what we watch on TV, because sin will no longer reign. So when I focus on Jesus, I am reminded that even today there are children being saved and delivered from human traffickers (see ProjectRescue.com), and that if there are persecuted Christians that means people are being saved (see Persecution.com), and that I don't have to watch those dirty Hollywood shows and there are alternatives (see Genesis Code - great movie on Netflix). To have hope, I must remember to look at the big picture. As Christians, we know what happens in the end...WE WIN! This life is tough, but it's temporary and one day we'll be in eternity with Jesus. It's all about perspective. God is waiting to call us home after the last person has turned to Jesus. Jesus, come quickly! Revelation 22:20

Tiramisu in Italy

Earlier this month I traveled to Italy for nine days and visited three popular cities. In each city I tried Italian dishes that I did not like the taste of in the US. I tried gnocchis, a dish I normally try to avoid but absolutely loved its authentic version. I tried cannolis, spaghetti with tomato sauce, and of course tiramisu and I found that Italian food tastes much better in Italy. As a result, I gained a new appreciation for Italian food. Though you won't see me ordering tiramisu in America, I will definitely try one when I go back for a visit to Italy.