An Interesting Thursday…

So each week in my English class, we get what’s called an “Article of the Week” or “AOW”. Basically, it’s a news article on some random current event that we must annotate and discuss on the Thursday of the week we get it in a Socratic Seminar (aka, a large group discussion about our opinions and views of the article).
Explanation aside, today we got our last AOW of the year and it was on a thing called the Ferguson Effect. Basically, the police and the people in Chicago and other cities with similar trends, are looking for something to blame for the intense increase of crime and murder rates in these cities, statistics that have gone higher than they have been in decades. It’s perfectly plausible that they would want to blame something or someone, even if only to avoid being blamed.

However, what struck me as odd about this article was how it seemed like I knew this was coming. Like I knew what was going on. I thought about, then remembered something I had read a few weeks ago about the six seals when looking in Revelations. I know God made me remember, because I wouldn’t have thought of something that specific. Revelations 6:3-4 says “When He opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, “Come and see.” Another horse, fiery red, went out. And it was granted to the one who sat on it to take peace from the earth, and that people should kill one another; and there was given to him a great sword.”
Needless to say…… It’s gonna be a really interesting Thursday…

I will post an update after the seminar to tell you guys how it went.

The Crown of Thorns Revelation

I met a beautiful freshman named “Susan” (name has been changed for privacy) this morning, just talking to her about general things like the weather and our love of Starbucks drinks. I felt like I should invite her to my show, and at first she politely said, “No thanks”. Then a random girl walked over and said, “I’ll go because I’m nice,” taking my poster and walking away.

As the girl left, Susan explained that the girl had been treating her badly and teasing her, trying to make Susan start a fight. She asked what the show was so I explained it, handing her a poster from my backpack. I asked her what the girl was teasing her about, and Susan avoided the question, reading my poster silently.

Suddenly she looked up at me. “You were suicidal??” she asked, disbelief and concern shadowing her tone.

I simply smiled slightly and asked again, “What does she tease you about?”

Realization flashed over her face, and she got very quiet. I took this chance to encourage her to stay strong and have hope, then the bell rang for class and I left, letting her keep the poster.

The sad truth is, bullying has become a ‘normal’ and even ‘acceptable’ part of society. Even when we’re just little kids, we’re told it’s normal to be picked on and teased.

No. It’s not normal.

It’s normal for some people to dislike you. It’s normal for people to disagree with you.

It’s NOT normal to dread going to school in third grade because you are constantly ridiculed every day, to the point of self harm and later, suicidal thoughts. It’s NOT normal to fear being seen, because the bully and their friends will corner and beat you if they see you. It’s NOT normal to resist telling adults when you need help because the bully is never actually caught by them and they believe you are a liar.

This HAS to STOP.

When these things happen to people every day starting from such a young age, they become mentally scarred their whole lives. I know because I am one of these people.

 

However, there is good news in all of this. It DOES get better. I am living proof – literally – that it does get better. That is such a cliche, but it’s so true. I wouldn’t be here without help though. and my help came from Jesus.

I remember one time in particular, I asked Jesus a question. I said, “Lord, I know You were whipped for sicknesses and beaten for physical wounds and stuff, but what about mental damage? What about mental illness or things like suicide and self harm and all of that? Can You really understand how THAT feels? Can You really say You died for that too??”

His answer made me cry…

“Think about the crown of thorns,” He said.

I replied, “Yeah I know, they were mocking Your authority and position as King of kings.”

“Yes, but think about it,” He said gently. “They could have just put it on My head, but they drove the thorns into My skull….into My brain.”

I got quiet, remembering that.

“Lacie,” He said, “each thorn pressed into My skull represented a different mental illness or disease. I died for mental scars too.”

I just cried, the revelation of His truth and love was so amazing….

God is truly God of breakthrough and freedom! He died for you knowing every single pain you could ever experience, be it physical, emotional, or mental, so He could heal you and free you. God loves you so much…you literally don’t understand it. None of us do. We cannot grasp His love. His love is unconditional, you can’t earn it, and it never ends. You can’t lose it or gain it, He loves you where you are. God does not excuse sin, but just like every good father He doesn’t love you any less when you sin. It breaks His heart and He will discipline you, but He still loves you the same.

I AM ALIVE

Oh my goodness…..where do I start?????

I’m sorry. I am so sorry.

Let’s see…..well, life kind of hit me down for a good while there. A lot happened in my family and I’m a senior in high school now, about to do my own music show to share my testimony with some people…. Simply put, this has been the most difficult year of my life so far….and also, we lost internet for a while so that didn’t help.

However; good news! I am back and I am alive!!!!! If anyone still follows me, great! Good to see you’re still around! Thank you so much for being incredibly patient with me. Please help me get more readers, I promise I won’t disappear this time around.

If you’re new, hi! Good to see you for the first time. I hope the little ‘golden nuggets’ as i like to call them help you, I know they’ve always helped me. Feel free to look around and explore!

In general, it’s been a trying season for me, but it’s driven me closer to God than ever before. I have a LOT of new posts for you guys, and rather than bogging you down with all of them at once, I’ve decided I’ll put one out every day until I’m caught up and then it’s all up to God. After that, i’ll try my best to update once a week if I can, but given that these revelations come from God and are told to me by God, it’s all up to Him.

Again I am so so sorry that i vanished off the face of the earth. I’m back and I am alive and I will definitely keep up with this blog this time.

Love you guys if you’re still here!

~~Lacie Shalom~~

The Importance of Love

So here’s something to think about, even though I’ve been on this rant a while it is SO important that you guys understand this! 

The church, like I keep saying, is ONE. And yet I mentioned last time that the churches don’t act like a church, they act like businesses.

Well here’s another piece to the puzzle: Something I noticed about pastors in general. 

So obviously to be the pastor of a church you kinda have to believe in what that church teaches. The problem is, the churches don’t all teach the same thing. They may teach from the same bible but their words and translations and interpretations are completely different. 

Everyone these days is looking for that “one TRUE religion”. Well, news flash: 

THERE IS NO ONE TRUE RELIGION. THERE IS ONLY THE ONE TRUE GOD. 

If we would just stop and take the time to be in awe of the wonder of God maybe we wouldn’t have such a hard time ‘picking a church’. The churches should all teach the same thing. We should all teach about the value and joy of having a relationship with God and about the emptiness of religion! We should all just stop playing “who’s daddy’s favorite” and grow up! Band together and expand God’s kingdom together. 

WAKE UP CHURCH. While you’re sitting inside your four walls competing with other churches the enemy is tallying up his soul count! We are losing because we are fighting the wrong battles! 

Religion is empty and has little to no meaning in the end. The bible specifically says that in the end when the people of earth are judged some will say, “But God, we did all these things, we obeyed the rules!” And God will answer: “Depart from Me, I NEVER KNEW YOU.” 

Now, in order to KNOW someone, you have to spend time with them and be with them and build a RELATIONSHIP with them! So why is the church teaching RELIGION and RULES and DO’S AND DO NOT’S?!?!?! Instead we need to be teaching that God just wants to BE WITH YOU. HE IS FORGIVING! HE IS FAITHFUL! HE DOES NOT ABANDON YOU WHEN YOU MESS UP!! GOD JUST WANTS YOU TO ALLOW HIM TO LOVE YOU! IT’S NOT ABOUT THE RULES, IT’S NOT ABOUT THE DO’S OR DON’T’S IT’S ABOUT THE LOVE OF GOD IN YOUR LIFE!!!! HE IS A FATHER THAT ONLY WANTS TO LOVE AND BLESS HIS CHILDREN!!!!!!!!! WHY IS THIS IGNORED? PEOPLE PUT TOO MUCH FAITH INTO THE REGULATIONS ONLY TO FIND OUT THAT IT BRINGS EMPTINESS AND NO FEELING. LIVES GET CHANGED WHEN PEOPLE MEET GOD. AND THEY WON’T MEET GOD IF THEY BELIEVE THEY CAN’T FEEL. How many relationships do you know where the two people involved feel absolutely nothing? Any relationship? No? I thought not. So if having a relationship means to feel or to have a deep regard for, then how much more does your Heavenly Father feel about you? It’s not about how many chapters of the scriptures you read each day or about how long you pray every night or even about how many worship songs you know! IT’S ALL ABOUT HOW MUCH YOU LOVE. Without love even the most dedicated Christian life is meaningless! As it says in corinthians: 

“If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.” (‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭13‬:‭1-3‬ NLT)

The church has to understand that while reading your bible and praying and following the ten commandments and all that stuff is important, it’s importance pales in comparison to the importance of Love. Loving others and most of all, just loving God! 

God is Love. We are His children. We should be Love too. 

You Are Victorious

The Open Letter

Dear fragile heart I know you’re close to being broken 

It feels like no one’s listening and it’s cause you’re so soft spoken

But know this: 

Through every trial this crazy life can bring

You have power over darkness cause you’re a Princess and your Dad’s the King. 

So precious daughter stand strong in faith, you have no reason to worry

For you are a mighty warrior, you have been given the victory. 

Sincerely, H. S. 

—————————–

QUICKIE NUGGET! 

Did anyone ever really take the time to stop and think about that? That you are given the victory. You haven’t earned it, and I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news but the truth is every day we fight in spiritual battles. You cannot win them on your own. If you try you’re going to lose, even in the less obvious battles. 

Alright so we haven’t earned the right to the title of “victor” over the enemy, and we can’t defeat him on our own so how do we win? Through God. 

Scriptures says that even the demons know the word. They shake at the sound of His name, they know the power our Father has. And they will do everything they can to get you farther from him because they know they don’t stand the smallest chance if you bring God into your trials. 

I mean think about it. Scripture says we are given the victory. When you’re given something you don’t have to earn it. God wants you to be victorious, God never wants to lose you to your circumstances. He fights our every battle. And you know something? It makes a lot of sense. When I think of the term “given the victory” I think of “complete and utter surrender”. The enemy must flee when confronted with the presence of God, when you resist him by holding tight to your Father. Not “might” flee, not “will eventually” flee, must flee. The enemy is such a coward that he runs immediately at the first sight of God. He knows that means he’s gonna get crushed, so he runs away. That’s what I think of when I hear “given the victory”. The devil surrenders because he knows that God’s power reigns and he has no chance at all of bringing you down!! However, that doesn’t mean he’ll stop trying. He never will. But spoiler alert:

NEITHER WILL GOD. 

God will never make you face anything on your own. Sometimes he allows bad circumstances into our lives to draw us closer to Him. He never causes them, but He sometimes allows things. However, it’s nothing you can’t handle with God by your side. 

So be strong mighty warriors! The enemy is helpless against our mighty and powerful God in heaven! He doesn’t stand a chance! He is defeated! God is victorious! (But secret: we are God’s children. The spiritual authority runs in us as well. Know what that means? WE ARE VICTORIOUS IN GOD.) 

We Are A Church; NOT A Business

So…here’s a lil’ thought: why do churches act like businesses? 

What am I talking about? I’m talking about the fact that the church doesn’t act like a church. Instead, they all stay inside their own four walls, without reaching out to other churches and building each other up. Instead, they act like businesses, competing to see who can get the most members and expand faster, who can preach smoother or who has the better worship teams. They ignore the other churches because they’re more concerned with pulling in all the members another church can’t grab. This is only what I’ve noticed in some churches, not all.

Why not instead act like ONE church? ONE body of God? I’ve mentioned this before and I’ll say it again: we are ONE. A body cannot function if any one part acts outside of the whole. The Bible always says that the church is just that: THE CHURCH. As in SINGULAR. Not the CHURCHES, just THE CHURCH. THE BRIDE of God. Now I don’t know about you, but when I think of “brides” I think of Mormons. We aren’t mormons, we are children of God! And you know what else? THAT MAKES EVERY SINGLE ONE OF US FAMILY. Can a family with a common goal get there faster by going different directions? No! Can a family reach a common goal by tearing each other down and competing to see who’s the greatest? No! A family is a team. And “team” is NOT spelled with “I”. Point is, rather than turning the saving of souls into a contest of who can get the most members fastest, why not help each other. If your church isn’t doing anything, but maybe you know of a smaller church (or a big one) that is having a worship night or event of the sort, why not tell your congregation! You aren’t doing anything, so it’s not like you’re ignoring your church. Turn that event into a REVIVAL!!! 

Besides, it shouldn’t matter where God meets his children, be it in your church or their church or even in their own homes! All the preachers are speaking from the same bible right? The Bible says “Where two or more gather, there I also will be”. That “I” is God. And I know for sure that there are no one-member churches out there so what’s stopping you? Just imagine it: God flows in your church? Great. God flows in their church as well? Awesome! Do a joint event! Bring their church to you or better yet you go to their church! YOU DON’T HAVE TO SWITCH CHURCHES TO GO TO A ONE-NIGHT EVENT OR EVEN A CONFERENCE. 

God is never changing. He doesn’t care if you’re from a mega church or a house church. We are ALL His children who He loves EQUALLY. So why can’t the church start treating each other that way as well? 

We are all God’s children. 

We all read and believe in the same Bible and the same God. 

We are all part of the body of Christ. 

We all have the same goal of saving people. 

What do we have to lose by working together and helping each other? 

It isn’t a CONTEST. It’s a CONCEPT. 

We are one church, one body, one bride. Better start acting like one, don’t you think?  

The Cross And The Empty Grave

Ok guys I got somethin’ to say about this whole Easter thing. I realize that God sent His only son and Jesus gave up His life for us, which is true. That’s what the cross represents. The greatest act of true love in history, and technically the only act of true love in history since perfect love only comes from God in the first place. But there’s something that has been bothering me. 

Why do we use the cross more than we use the empty grave? These are both huge symbols of the Christian faith, but it seems the only time the empty grave comes up is at Easter. Yes the cross is very VERY important but SO IS THE EMPTY GRAVE! The empty grave symbolizes that Jesus is not dead, that He is alive! I feel like the cross is still a great symbol but the beauty of the gospel is that Jesus, our Savior, is NOT dead! He did die, but He rose again! And because He lives, we can call on His help and meet Him in any circumstance! If you think about it, dead people can’t help the living at all because they’re dead. But not Jesus. No, Jesus rose from the dead and He is very much alive! I think we should use the symbol of the empty grave more often, not JUST during Easter. 

Jesus is alive! He will meet you when you cry out for Him and He will help you through anything if you take it and lay it at His feet. Remember the empty grave. Jesus does hear you and He does care because He’s alive. And that means He can help you and comfort you and prepare you for whatever’s coming if you stick close to Him, which makes Him overjoyed.

Offerings of the Heart

A firstborn donkey may be bought back from the LORD by presenting a lamb or young goat in its place. But if you do not buy it back, you must break its neck. However, you must buy back every firstborn son. No one may appear before Me without an offering. (‭Exodus‬ ‭34‬:‭20‬ NLT)

So I was snooping around Exodus and I came across this. In this section God was explaining to the people of Israel through Moses about what is His and how they should live. But there was one part of this verse that stuck out to me. “No one may appear before Me without an offering.” Now true this is the old testament, and God was technically talking about burnt offerings and animal sacrifices and stuff, however, something Phil King said last night stuck in my head as well. (I went to a worship night and he is a famed Worship Leader)  

He said that when you go to worship nights, you’re there to bless Jesus, not the other way around. This passage of scripture may seem irrelevant, but it’s still very important. When you go before God, you are bringing Him an offering. You are offering yourself to Him. You are saying, “God, I’m here because I want to meet You. I want more of You, and You are the most important thing in my life.” You offer yourself and your will as the sacrifice so it can be replaced with God’s will and more of His presence. And in this way, you bless Him. He loves being with you. 🙂  

 

Just a lil’ golden nugget. (What my mom calls it. And Mr. King too apparently!!)

“Silly Rabbit, Trix are for kids!”

Cereal. Trix cereal to be exact. Before you scroll down, gimme a minute. You might like this. 🙂 

Fun fact, fruit cereal isn’t actually different flavors! IT’S ALL THE SAME. It’s a giant psychological trick they play on you to make you believe it’s different flavors by listing them on the box, but it’s actually all the same. I could explain the science, but that’s besides the point here. Trix is probably the best tasting yet most unhealthy fruit cereal there is. But when you’re eating it you don’t think about how it’s all the same, you only think about how good it is and ignore it’s unhealthiness and uniformity. 

Sin is kinda like that. We make ourselves believe that some sin is worse than others, but to God, sin is sin. We try to put it in categories of severity when really, by the only standard that matters, it’s all the same. Another thing. Sin is bad, we all know this. But when you’re living in sin, even if you know down right it’s wrong, it seems ok. You convince yourself that your sin isn’t as bad as the next person’s to excuse your own rebellion against God. You convince yourself that it’s too enjoyable to stop sinning to try and ignore the unhealthiness of the sin and the fact that you are still sinning because it seems to feel good. It doesn’t matter how many excuses you give God about why you’re sinning, like it doesn’t matter how many “flavors” a company may tell you is in their fruit cereal, it’s all the same. And down the line, you can’t escape the result of living in sin without turning to God. It doesn’t matter what the sin is, t’s just that simple.

To Sweeten Or Not To Sweeten?

I remembered this analogy today while talking to my friend about things God had shown me, in relation to gifts and such. 

I was trying to use the last box of cake batter, but I was missing one of the ingredients. Lucky for me, there was an alternate ingredient you could replace it with. Unsweetened applesauce. Bad news, we only had regular applesauce that even I could barely eat due to how sweet it was! I was going to use it anyway, thinking, “Applesauce is all the same, who cares if it’s sweet or not?” But then I thought, “Wait no. The recipe specifically asked for unsweetened. If I use the opposite, that would change the end result.” I mean it would still be a cake, but it would be different than what it’s supposed to be had I followed the recipe as it was written. It would be so much better with the right ingredients and not with similar ingredients. 

The same applies to our gifts. God has made each of us with certain gifts to bring glory to Him. But we also have free will. We can choose to glorify Him or glorify ourselves with the talents and skills God designed us with. Oh sure, glorifying yourself with your gift can still get you success and popularity and such, but all of that is temporary. When you use God’s gifts to glorify yourself, you are changing what the gift is in a way. It’s still applesauce, but it’s the difference between unsweetened and oversweetened. They seem the same, but they are completely different. You can choose to use your gifts for yourself, but in the end it won’t be nearly as eternally rewarding and powerful as if you used them to glorify the One True King.