If Jesus was to run for president………..

I am writing this blog to try to get understanding of my own but see if together we can piece together what Jesus would be like if he was here today and running for a political office. I think that the last statement is a false statement because Jesus would not want or need to run for office.

I am also writing this blog to see why a lot of Christians believe that the Republican Party is the “Christian party”. If you go into most churches they believe that you should be a republican. I am a registered democratic which is not a popular thing in a lot of churches.

I am researching each party to see their core values. I am trying to be fair and determine which group if any truly hold more Christian values than the other. I have done a lot of research on a list of core values of each party. Since there is so much out there on trying to sell one party over another I have found this to be difficult.  On http://www.helium.com/items/1625598-10-differences-between-democrats-and-republicans I found an article that was the most informative to me on this subject.  The Article name is: 10 core values that separate Democrats from Republicans. By Rena Sherwood.  I will be using this article as my basis for comparison.  Also on this website please check out the article by A.T Meininger link is http://www.helium.com/items/1638569-core-values-snicker  I just found this funny.

Core Values of the Democratic Party:

Taxing the Rich and not the poor

The poor need outside help to get past their circumstances.

Everyone should have the chance to have the “American Dream” having proper food, shelter      and clothing. Also have affordable health care.

More government involvement.

Support government aid such as welfare because everyone needs a helping hand.

For gun control

For abortion

 

Core Values of the Republican Party:

For a flat tax for all and giving the rich tax cuts. The whole trickledown effect.

The poor are poor because it’s their own fault and should not receive outside help.

To make as much money as possible and make their families as comfortable as possible.

Less government involvement.

Do not support government aid such as welfare because people will take advantage of services such as these.

Against Gun control

Against abortion.

 

 

Jesus Core Values:

Pro life

Help the needy

Love your neighbor as yourself.

Love

Against adultery

Truly living the word of God.

Standing up even when people don’t agree with you.

 

Here lays the problem with politics today. The Politian’s are selling a “brand” like you would an Oreo cookie.  They are selling the idea of what a democratic or a republican “should be”. They are not true to themselves or to the country. NONE of them are representing the people; they are representing what the people who pay for their campaigns what them to represent. They represent the 1%.  

Here is the conclusion that I have come up with. Both parties hold SOME Christian values. But neither holds what most Christian’s value. We have become a very greedy society. Our politicians reflect what we have become.  

If Jesus would run for office he would not be a popular candidate. He would stand up for the unborn, the needy and stand up for God. Jesus would not hang out with Republican or democratic Christians. He would not like what we have become.  He would hang out with the prostitutes and homeless people. He might take a politician like Matthew the tax collector. I think Jesus would take down our whole political system and one day he will when he comes back. Jesus would not need to “sell “his brand. He would not need to make promises he couldn’t keep. He has already given us his ultimate gift.  His life.

As Americans and so called Christians (including myself in that) we should look at the whole candidate and see what the character of the person is. If they can’t be faithful to their wife then how can they be faithful to our country?  They have proven they can’t be trusted. That includes both parties.  Let’s stop looking into party lines and look at what values you hold dear to you and what each candidate has to say about that. I believe in being my brother’s keeper. So that is very important to me.   Whatever your choice is you should VOTE!!!!!

 

 

God Bless,

 

Dawn

 

Side note: I know a lot of people will not agree with me and I really don’t care. Please don’t leave negative comments. I will not respond to those and they will not be posted on my site.

 

Read Full Post »

Lessons I learned……

My husband and I had put tile down in our basement. This was a bigger job then we ever imagined it would be. We had never done it before so we thought that it would be easier than it was. I learned some valuable lessons while doing this job. Here are the top five things I learned from tiling.

Patience. This job required a lot of patience. I don’t have a lot of patience with doing tedious jobs.   I also had to learn how to be patient with my husband. He had to teach me how to do this while he was learning himself. There were some bad points while doing it. At times I am sure my husband wanted to give up. I know that I did.

Asking for help. I have a really hard time asking for help from others. I don’t mind asking my family for help because in my heart I know that they don’t mind. I hate asking others outside of my family for help. I am very prideful and think that I can do anything without any help.

Perseverance.  I had to learn how to keep going even when I wanted to give up. There were times when we had worked on it for 10 hours that I had to keep going to get it done.  We were in it for the long haul and just had to get it done.

To work hard. I have never had a problem with hard work. But this was much more labor intensive then I ever thought it was going to be. I have never really done manual labor in my life so this was a new experience for me.

 Appreciation. I have a new-found appreciation for people who do these kinds of jobs for a living. I also appreciate the work when it was all done. It felt good to get the job done and now my basement looks awesome.

 

All these things can also be translated into my faith. I know that I have to be patient with others like how God has been patient with me. I know that I need to humble myself and ask God for help when I need it. I need to preserver when things get hard and I want to give up. I need to work hard at my faith to let it grow. I also need to appreciate all God has done for me. I learned a lot of good lessons while doing this.

 

God bless,

Dawn

Read Full Post »

I will get you for that….

This issue has come up a lot lately in my life.  So I have decided to write about it.  We have all been in a situation where we have felt hurt or wronged in some way. I know that at least for me that is when I go into attack mode. I am going to hurt the person back that hurt me. I feel justified that they did it first so it’s okay for me to do it.  Are we ever really justified to hurt other people?   I say no.

Now I know what you are thinking “course you’re going to say no!” It seems like such a simple answer but very hard to do. I know that at least for me that I have a hard time letting go. I have a hard time forgiving people who have wronged me.  I want them to hurt and hurt as bad as me. That is wrong of me. If I expect that God will forgive me then I need to forgive others. It is really that simple.  

There have been times that I have seen other people fight for months over one issue. Neither one wants to back down nor the person that felt that they were wronged feels justified to hurt the other person back. Sometimes the person that is not back downing knows that they are wrong but to prideful to admit that. I have done this many times. I have been wrong but just too prideful to admit that I was. It has ruined relationships in my life when I couldn’t back down. I felt justified in hurting them back.  YOU are never justified in hurting another person. You have become just as guilty as the person that wronged you.  I know that I can become passive-aggressive when I really get my feelings hurt. I won’t go right to the person but say things loud enough for the person to hear. I know that I am hurting the person. I am wrong in that I am gossiping.

There is another thing that can go into this. I have seen people fight when they ask for someone to keep them accountable in their relationship with Christ and when this person does they get mad. Don’t ask someone to keep you accountable in Christ then get mad if you don’t like what they have to say.  I smoke, curse and drink. I don’t ask my Christ following friends to keep me accountable on those things because I am not willing to change in those areas yet. That is my problem. I want to be kept accountable on things that I am spiritual ready for and open to listening.

 

God wants us to grow with friends that can lift us up. He wants us to have people who we are accountable to. He also wants us to forgive others.  Jesus while dying on the cross prayed for the people that were crucifying him. In Luke 23:34 “Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”^[And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.”

If Jesus can say that to God while people are murdering him I think we give forgive when people hurt our feelings.

Read Full Post »

The top five reason why “super Christains” can’t exist.

          I use the term “super Christian” a lot and I am not using it as words of endearment.  I actually use it in a negative light.  For instance “we all can’t be super Christian like so and so…” or “I know I will never be a super Christian.”  What do I mean by “super Christian?”  I mean that these are the people who always have it together. They can quote verses from the bible, they never miss a service, they are  involved in everything in church, and they never seem to question their faith….ever.  

So here are my top five reasons why super Christians can’t exist.  

1. There was only one perfect person in this world. That is Jesus.
2. We are born with sinful nature. No matter what we do we can’t get rid of the sinful nature even if you are saved. This is a daily struggle for all Christians.
3. Having doubts is part of human nature. Whether it’s doubts about  passing a test or get that new job. Everybody has doubts about something.  
4. Jesus did not Judge others, he loved others. The same can’t be said about Christians.
5. Thanks To Adam and Eve, we lost our spot with God that made us perfect, free from sin and we can’t be free from sin until we get to heaven.

     Now, I think that we should all strive everyday to try to be as perfect as Jesus was. But let’s face some facts here; we will fall short everyday to the glory of God.  Here is the one thing we should remember: Jesus died on the cross for all of our sins. Point. Blank. Period.  In John 14:6 Jesus said, “I am the Way and the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

 Stop trying to be the “super Christian” that everybody thinks you should be and start being the Christian that God wants you to be. Only God knows your true heart and nobody else. The nice thing is that God gave us Jesus but also a support system called church. I believe that you can have a real faith in God and not have a church. BUT I also think that church gives you a support system that helps you to reach your full potential in Christ.

 God bless,

Dawn

Read Full Post »

Stuck…….

 

I have been really struggling this week on a topic to write about for this blog. Normally I just have an idea hit me and then I write about it. I have thought about many topics this week that I could write about but just couldn’t get the piece the way that I wanted it. So, here I am typing and praying that something will come to me. I don’t know about you but this week has seemed more stressful than others. I had some family conflicts and such but nothing to out of the ordinary. I feel stuck. I feel stuck in place, I am not moving forward or backwards. I know that others have felt this way but this week has been worse than usual with this feeling. I know that I feel stuck with life things but I also feel spiritually stuck. I am not moving anywhere spiritually.

 

Now, I know that if I want to find my path I should look in the bible and pray. I am telling all of you that I have done this but still no luck. There are times that I just wish God would say “ Hey! “ and I would look up and point to myself. Then God would say “ yea you. Why do you have the stupid look on your face. Yes I can really talk from the heavens and you better listen. Here is what I want you to do.” and then He would tell me where He wants me. I figured he talked to Moses through a burning bush, he could do that for me.

 

I know that I don’t like being stuck in place and I am not sure how to get out of it. I think that part of the reason I feel like this is because I am unsure of what God has planned for me, so instead of moving forward or backward I have planted my feet down so I don’t disappoint God or anyone around me when I mess up the plan that God has laid out for me.

 

God has given us all spiritual gifts that he wants us to use. I am still unsure what my spiritual gift is ( yea I know I am 30 years old I should know) but I don’t. So if I am unsure what my gifts are and I am too scared to move forward than of course I am going to feel stuck in place.

 

I normally try to write to inspire or to make you think in a different light. I am sharing this because I think that you can all relate. I haven’t talked to anyone about it that could counsel me and maybe I should but I have just trying to figure this out on my own. So, I hope you all can relate and maybe think about how you might be stuck in place. I can change this I just have to be willing to do it. I hope the same for all of you. I am leaving you with some verses that I hope inspire you and me.

 

“The Lord says, ‘I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you’.” Psalm 32:8

 

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6

 

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” Romans 8:28

 

God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another… Do it with all the strength and energy God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 4:10, 11

 

　

 

God Bless,

 

Dawn

 

Read Full Post »

Why is it so hard to be thankful?

Why is it so hard to be thankful?  I find it hard to be thankful when I can’t pay by bills, when my kids are being naughty, when it seems that everybody always has more than me.  It  is hard in a society that the more you have the better of a person you are.   Is there things to be thankful for? Well of course there is!!!!

So here is a my list  of things that I am thankful for.

•  I am thankful that I have Jesus as my savior.
•  I am thankful to have a husband that loves me.
•  I am thankful that I am a mother.
•   I am thankful for a loving mother, father, sister, cousin, and grandparents.
•   I am thankful for loving friends.
•   I am thankful that I have a house.
•  I am thankful that I have always have food in my house.
• I am thankful for having clean, running water at my disposal at anytime.
• I am thankful to wake up every morning.
• I am thankful to have a church family.   

Actually writing this list it could be a lot longer but I think you get the jest. There are so many things in life to be positive about or thankful for, it’s hard to be negative. I have been really negative lately and today I had to stop myself and reevaluate what is important in life.  The things I have are not as important as the people who I have. I am thankful for all the good and bad in my life because the bad stuff is what makes me grow as a person and as a follower of Christ. 

 

God bless,

Dawn

Read Full Post »

Fleas have taken over my house!!

I think that the title says it all. My day begins today ripping out carpets, throwing away blankets and getting rid of things that the fleas have taken over. I have never had a flea problem in my house until about a month ago. My mom noticed that my golden retriever was itching a lot and informed me that she thought he had fleas. Being the good pet owner that I am I gave him a bath, thinking this would solve the problem. Well the flea problem was bigger than I ever thought it was. Not only did my dog have fleas but so did my cat. Then these little pests got into my carpet and the rest is history. As I am cleaning out every inch of my house I started thinking that Fleas are like sin, it starts off small then grows into a problem bigger than you ever expected.

So how does sin take over our lives? Well I think that it starts off by not acknowledging that some of the things that we do are sinful in nature such as telling a “white lie”. We have all told a white lie at one point or another, sometimes for what we think are good reasons. The funny thing about lies is that once you tell one it gets easier to tell another.  So here is a sin that starts small like fleas but then grows into a bigger problem.  Once you have too many lies it’s hard to keep tract of them then you get caught, just like my fleas.  

So how do we deal with the infestation of these fleas in our lives? Well for Sin the only way to be forgiven and cleared of the sin is through Jesus Christ, who died on the cross for our sins. For my fleas that would be an exterminator. So I think of Jesus like an exterminator for our sins, He helps wipe it out and give us the skills to try not to continue living in sin. Even with Jesus you will still struggle with sin, just like my struggle to keep my house flea free.

So keep this in mind Romans 8:1-4 (NIV)

^“1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, ² because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. ³ For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, ⁴ in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”

 

I know that you have all heard this before but Jesus will set you free. Just like a flea bomb will set my house free.

 

God Bless,

Dawn

Side note: By husband was less than thrilled that I wrote about this problem.

 

Read Full Post »

I want the perfect life!!!!!!!!

I want the perfect life!!!!!

As my children are screaming and fighting with each other I find myself saying “I want the perfect life that everybody else seems to have!”  I think that we have all said that a time or two.  Often I read on Facebook or even other blogs how perfect their life is. I sometimes want to put on my status “My kids are driving me nuts and I want to go join the circus!” or “I am so tired of being broke!”  But I won’t put that because it is the appearance that my life is just as perfect as theirs that I want to keep.  I will flat-out admit that my children have a listening problem at times, my husband and I fight, and I am broke.  I don’t always enjoy being a mom or a wife.  Yep, I said it I don’t always enjoy being a mom or a wife.  There are times I have to put myself in timeout just to deal for a minute.

NOW I am not saying that I don’t love my family and feel blessed everyday that I have a great family.   God has always provided just enough money so people don’t sue me. There are just times when my kids are running around a store, not listening that I feel very judge. I don’t expect my children will be perfect because I am not perfect. It would just be nice if they would just sit down when told.  Now my children are really sweet boys and I love them very much. There are also times I would just like to go to the store and not worry that the extra candy I bought my children will leave me with no money for the next week.

I think that part of my reason for feeling like this is because I want to keep up with all the “super Christians” that I know. Now they seem to have the perfect life, or is that all they are willing to show me? That is a question that they can only answer.

So what is the perfect life? I mean the life that everybody else wants. Well the answer is there is no perfect life. Nobody, no matter what people say they still have the same problems that I do. Even rich people have issues. Just look at the housewives from wherever. They have the money and all that but I would not want their life.  I am really good at comparing myself to others and that is something that I need to work on.  I know that God has a plan for my family and we just have to listen and be willing to do the work.

So here it is everybody for all the mothers who struggle to keep face STOP!!!!! No matter what trials you are facing you are not alone. There are other people just like you; all you have to do is find them. You are not alone in this world because you always have Jesus!!!! Jesus always has your back as long as you have faith. I work every day at remembering that God loves me and He is always there for me.

James 1:2-4
“Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” (NASB)

God Bless,

Dawn

Read Full Post »

hoarding: are you buried alive?

My newest addiction on T.V. are the shows on hoarding. There is the A& E show “Hoarders” and the TLC “Hoarding: buried alive.” These shows got me thinking about what hoarding is and how it would be defined. So that is where I am going to start is by defining hoarding.

According to Mayoclinic.com:

“Hoarding is the excessive collection of items, along with the inability to discard them. Hoarding often creates such cramped living conditions that homes may be filled, with only narrow pathways winding through stacks of clutter. Some people also collect animals, keeping dozens or hundreds of pets often in unsanitary conditions.

Hoarding, also called compulsive hoarding and compulsive hoarding syndrome, may be a symptom of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). But many people who hoard don’t have other OCD-related symptoms.

People who hoard often don’t see it as a problem, making treatment challenging. But intensive treatment can help people who hoard understand their compulsions and live safer, more enjoyable lives.”

So hoarding is the inability to get rid of objects. My question is objects the only things that we can hoard? My answer is no, I think that we can hoard other things it being money , love, time. You can hoard your money by being cheap. Now I am not saying that being cheap or thrifty (what I like to call) by finding sales or going to cheaper stores for food, cloths, etc… is a bad thing actually it is quite smart. I am talking about when you never spend any money of your own. You may tell people that you are always broke so they don’t ask for money or when you never let your friends live down the fact that you paid for their dinner six months ago. . You can hoard love by not showing affection to your children or to your spouse. You can hoard your time by not taking the time for others but only for yourself. We all need me time but not all the time. I know that at times I can hoard all these things, we all can.

So then after looking hoarding definition I then went to the bible to see what I could find on this subject. After a somewhat long search found this Luke 1:13-21 NIV the Parable of the Rich Fool

“¹³ Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”

¹⁴ Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” ¹⁵ Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”

¹⁶ And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. ¹⁷ He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’

¹⁸ “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. ¹⁹ And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’

²⁰ “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’

²¹ “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God””

I like this because I think that it does address hoarding in the light in which God wanted us to see. That God does not want us to hold on to everything even if we don’t need it. . We have all heard the saying “you can’t take it with you”. In Luke it is also saying, in my opinion, that when we hoard we are finding the things on earth more valuable than God. As I am watching these shows I find it interesting that they are “savers” or “collectors” yet they can’t walk in their house or actually live in the house. That their families feel like they don’t matter only “things” do. I also see that many of them have health problems due to the unsanitary conditions that they live in. Their hoarding is easier to see; others are not as easy to see. All of the things that we hoard are self-destructive either with our families or with God.

My rule of thumb for my house is: if you haven’t used it, worn it or seen it in 6 months you no longer need it. Part of that rule is that my husband and I clean out our closets every 6 months,

God Bless,

Dawn

Read Full Post »

What is your theme song?

Let me start this off my saying that I love music  from christian to country to rap.  I love it all.  I especially love theme songs. I think that theme songs say a lot about the movie or event that you are going to. I would have to say that my Theme song would be a cross between  the Black eyed peas ” I gotta feeling” to newsboys ” beautiful” . The Black eyed peas song I  just happen to love and it makes me want to dance ( warning that could be dangerous for you if you have to watch me dance) to Newsboys song that talks about all the things that are beautiful in life.  So my question is WHAT IS YOUR THEME SONG?

My next question is what is your theme bible verse?  Mine would be James 2:14-17 “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. “

This is a long one but   I want to do for others.  I not only  want to talk the talk but  walk the walk. I give time to church but also to a meal site that is not in my church. I do it because I want to but also I do it because that is  what God has asked me to do.

So think about it, when you die what would be the theme that people would remember you by.  I know that I want people to say ” she was a Kick butt kinda of gal,  one that took no crap but would give you the shirt off her back and truly loved as christ wanted her too.”   So my next question again is WHAT IS YOUR THEME  BIBLE VERSE?

 I think that getting a theme is a good way to look at life on a simpler level but also to maybe get you to think that maybe your life is not exactly the way that you want it or the way that you will be remembered. I know for me a couple of years ago my theme song would have been ” the devil went down to Georgia” lol….but true.

God Bless,

Dawn

Read Full Post »