Melissa's Journal
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Monday, September 7, 2009
As Josiah's birthday recently passed and our new little one's arrival is soon approaching, I happened to be reminded of this verse, and was struck by it:
"For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." Romans 8:18
Labour is a very hard thing. It felt like it would go on forever and each contraction was very painful. I did not enjoy the pain then and am not looking forward to the pain to come. Pregnancy also comes with its uncomfortable symptoms.
However, the tremendous pain of being in labour is nothing compared to the many blessings God has given us in our precious little boy - indeed the blessing of Josiah.
The pain of being in labour with him is long past and the memories of it are somewhat vague - and not even worthy to be compared to the joys of having him for almost two years now (yes, I'm including the time he was in the womb - which was also a very special, amazing time, in spite of any discomforts of being pregnant. :))
I know the same will be true of our unborn son or daughter.
And this is nothing - absolutely nothing - compared to what awaits those who truly belong to God. It is just a fraction of a glimpse into what God has prepared for those that love Him; whatever sufferings or trials God might allow those who are truly His to go through in this quickly passing life are nothing in comparison to being with Him forevermore.
"A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world." John 16:21
"But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him." 1 Corinthians 2:9
"Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away." James 4:14
Friday, June 27, 2008
Monday, June 23, 2008
11:33AM
Just did a bit of a friends cut... nothing against anyone at all, I just forget about this journal half of the time anyway these days, and when I do remember it's usually just random updates mostly for myself... and soon am going to be very busy with other things with the soon arrival of our little one. Mostly I cut people who either never comment anymore if they ever did at all, or I don't really feel a connection with or have much in common with. If you want to leave me on, that's fine, I will gladly check out your journal once in awhile and comment :) but I won't be offended if you take me off too.
Monday, April 7, 2008
7:32AM
This past weekend I felt a lot of little bumps, and Jason got to feel a few of them, too. Yesterday I got a pretty hard one. It didn't hurt - YET. ;-) But it again made me wonder just how tough this little one is going to become, if he or she is that strong already. It was also definitely fun to see the excited expression on J's face when he realized that it couldn't be anything else. :-D I can't imagine how people would go through this either without a loving husband to share in the joy and preparations. I mean I know it can be done, but it is obvious to us that nothing could possibly be better than the way God designed for things to be, and we definitely feel very blessed.
That being said, we don't want to be too distracted from what is really important. This is not the greatest thing that could happen to us, and I don't think people who are not married and do not have children ought to be jealous, because in a huge sense these are just earthly joys which won't even last - the greatest thing that could happen is to become truly a child of God, and all of this is simply a picture of something much greater. God uses many things in this life to teach us much greater spiritual lessons - mainly of His love for those who are truly His people, and the total dependence of His children upon Him. This little baby is totally dependent on me right now, just as we are totally dependent on God - although of course, ultimately, it is really God who is taking care of all 3 of us... Jason and I sometimes reflect on how amazing it is that we really have nothing to do with the absolute perfection of how God causes a life to be growing in the womb. Sure, it took a few things to happen before God would create this precious life, and it takes me eating properly, etc., to ensure the baby is healthy, but what do I really have to do with the little hands and legs and heartbeat in this tiny life? Absolutely nothing. I hate it that parents will so often tell their children that "Mommy and Daddy created you" - it's just not true. First, it escapes telling the truth about that awkward topic of sex for some parents, and second, and perhaps more importantly even - God is the one who created that child, NOT Mommy and Daddy. :-)
I am yet more convinced that this world does not have much time left - there is far too much information for it to be a coincidence. To me, it is kind of scary. I am also learning how little most of us really understand about so many things. Most of us just want to do our own thing and think we have things figured out when we really don't at all. And time is running out, and with that knowledge, I am finding it hard when I realize I am not paying enough attention to the one thing I should be paying attention to - God's Word, or spending enough time warning people as God had commanded Jonah to warn the Ninevites, and as Noah warned people, that the world was going to be destroyed. It makes me sad to know how many people are so convinced that it is impossible to know when Christ will come, but I also know that sadly, they are right - the Bible is very clear that Christ will indeed come as a thief in the night - for those who are not prepared or not truly watching. It is also clear that He will show those who are truly His when He is coming and will NOT come as a thief for them. It is not a topic worth debating; there is no more time for debate - with 3 years left there is only time to warn - and as we all know, 3 years, when we're talking about the END is NOT a lot of time at all - it is going to go by VERY fast. There is just time to plead with God for mercy, not just for those who seem to have no true care for God in the first place, but also for those who are convinced they are saved, but are sadly, among those who think they are saved but are not at all children of God - which, according to the Bible is a GREAT MANY - and that is a scary thought. But thankfully, there IS that time where God is still being merciful. It's not a lot of time by any means, but there is still some time left.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Just wondering if anyone knows the best photo sharing web-site around. Ideally I'd like to find one that is free, doesn't have too many ads (if any) and is truly private. I've been using facebook, but I don't think or trust that it is truly private even though I have everything set to "friends only". I know there is photobucket and flickr as well as google but am not sure about those, and there might be a better one?
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Last night I was listening a bit to a Bible study and a good point was brought up. It's one I've considered several times, and one I always must take to heart.
We feed ourselves breakfast, lunch, and dinner if we are taking care of our bodies - and maybe a couple of snacks in-between. It seems so simple doesn't it? Food is a physical picture of the spiritual food we ought to be taking in. Do we read the Bible even as much or as faithfully as we eat? Yet the Bible is much more important than the healthiest or best food we will ever eat, and provides something far more important and essential than any nutrient.
I don't think reading the Bible necessarily has to be "I sit down at 9:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. every day and read my Bible for an hour." - a form of godliness, rather than true godliness. Our entire lives should revolve around the Bible; God should be the very center of our lives.
Current mood:  contemplative
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
A year ago, I was in Nicaragua, on a missions trip. I had wanted to go on one of these trips for 5+ years, and while I was still single, because I knew that if I was married it would be less likely that I'd be able to go. God allowed that to happen; for me, it was one of my biggest dreams ever come true. We passed out several tracts and gave away several Bibles.
It's hard to believe that that was a year ago - that one year could go by so quickly. But it did. It's also difficult to believe that more than likely, the world is going to end in just over 3 years, and the next 3-4 years are going to fly by as well. We can believe all that we want that Christ is going to come as a thief in the night, and the sad and scary thing is that if you really believe that Christ is going to come as a thief in the night, then He probably is. For you.
Yes, the Bible says Christ is going to come as a thief in the night - for the unbelievers. This is what God says in the Bible.
"1 But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.
2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.
5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness." 1 Thessalonians 5:1-5
Yes, the Bible also seems to say that "no man knows the day or the hour." It's easy to automatically jump to the conclusion that no one will ever know, and to say that even Christ doesn't know when He will return. But it also says, "Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee." Revelation 3:3. And it is impossible for Christ Himself, who is God, not to know the exact hour He will come.
Yes, I know many people will want to believe that any of us who believe we can know when the last day is are just following the teachings of man. But the Bible makes it abundantly clear that if we are truly His, then in His time, we WILL know - just as Noah knew when God would destroy the world with a flood. Amos says, "Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets." Amos 3:7
It is easy to think that Christ will return at any hour. No one has to think about Christ actually coming back without a time to count down to. It's so easy to get comfortable in doing the things we like and want to hang onto about this life and to want to experience this life. That's what we want - LIFE, and the pleasures that come along with life. How would we really react if we knew that Christ was actually going to come tonight? When we say that Christ could even come tonight, do we really believe it? But all of a sudden when there is an actual time to look to, somehow that becomes impossible.
I make this post public for two reasons. First, although I do not fully understand the timing of the end, I fully believe that the world is probably going to end in less than four years, and cannot keep silent about that. Second, I must apologize to the world for anything I have said in the past, in witnessing, that may not have been true. It has come to my attention that my understanding of Hell has likely been very inaccurate. I am not 100% certain of that just yet - there is a lot of studying that I have to do still - but I am becoming more convinced of that, as well as more convinced about just how gracious God really is.
When God says, "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away, and there was no more sea." Revelation 21:1, I believe "sea" is a picture of Hell. That is something I knew for a long time. But I used to think that the verse only applied to Heaven. However, for there to truly be no more sea, there would be no more Hell at all. The Bible also says that "death and hell were cast into the lake of fire" and that "This is the second death." in Revelation 20:14. I used to believe that the second death was to be destroyed forever in Hell - a place that was both eternal and the worse than the worst things we could possibly imagine, all piled together. But Revelation 20:14 says that the "second death" is that "Death and Hell were cast into the lake of fire."
Revelation 21:4 says, "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away." Again, I used to think that this verse only applied to Heaven. But could it be that it really does mean that there will be no more death, sorrow, crying, and pain - not even in a place of eternal torment? That the former things truly are passed away once the world has come to an end?
People who are upset that this could be true should ask why they are upset. I know some people think that if there is no place of eternal torment, then the unbelievers will just be getting away with their rebellion against God. First of all, why would you ever want even the apparent worst of sinners to endure such a terrible punishment forever? We are all sinners, and whatever the penalty for sin is is something that we all deserve. James 2:10 says that if we fail in the least of the commandments, we are guilty of ALL. We all deserve the same punishment, and if we are spared from it, then it is only by God's grace and mercy and by nothing we have done. THIS is one of the major problems with the churches today and why I believe the church age is over.
Which church wants to give up its man-made doctrines? Which church truly has a GRACE ALONE doctrine? "And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, and is BECOME the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird." Revelation 18:2.
Even though for so long I believed that Hell was a place of eternal torment, it was never something I wanted anyone to experience. It would sadden me when I'd hear someone curse, wishing someone else to go to Hell, thinking that they didn't know what they were saying and being saddened that if a person could say something like that, they themselves would be in danger of going to the exact place they wished someone else to go to. "Knowing the terror of the Lord, we persuade men," was something that would come to mind, but far from often enough. Often I felt like I wasn't even witnessing, and of course there were times that I would doubt that I was even saved, or that we could really be 100% sure that we were truly one of God's children.
Like I said, I still have much studying to do. But here are a few reasons why I am becoming more convinced that perhaps Hell is not the eternal torment that many of us used to think:
* Should we believe in God and obey Him because we will escape a terrible punishment, or should we believe in and obey God simply because it is the right thing to do? Children should obey their parents not merely so they can avoid an admonishment, but rather because it is right. We should obey the laws of our country that don't go against God's laws not simply so we won't go to jail or look bad in the eyes of men, but simply because it is the right thing to do. How many people are there who are "Christians" simply because they are scared to go to Hell? The Bible says that there are MANY who will say to Him in that day, "Lord, Lord" to whom He will say, "Depart from me, I never knew you." "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." Matthew 7:21-23
* There are many verses in the Bible that talk about the unbelievers being destroyed, and "dead", and "cut off". We do have to reconcile these verses with the verses that seem to say that Hell will be a place of eternal suffering and torment - but where does the Bible actually say that Hell will be a place of eternal torment? It says that it is eternal, but I'm not seeing the verses about it being a place of suffering. To be eternally destroyed could simply mean that there is no possibility of ever coming back into existence. Also, how is there death when people would have to be alive forever to be experiencing this said eternal death?
* How hard was it to reconcile the idea of God torturing people in Hell forever with God being altogether merciful? Hard, right? Yes. That is the very reason some people who once called themselves Christians have turned away from so-called Christianity and the Bible. They perhaps correctly saw a problem with that idea. That doesn't mean that they were right to turn their backs on God, and it does mean that they were probably never saved in the first place (a true believer cannot lose his salvation) - because even if God really did intend to torment the non-elect in Hell forever, who would we be to question Him in our limited understanding of God's perfect justice and salvation plan? "Therefore He hath mercy on whom He will have mercy, and whom he will, he hardeneth. Thou wilt say then unto me, why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will? Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, why hast thou made me thus?" Romans 9:18-20.
* Is eternal torment the only kind of judgement we can think of that would be terrible? Being destroyed is terrible in and of itself, isn't it? One of the things we would be most afraid of is the possibility of being killed. We want life - we don't want to die. Death is a sad thing for us - as it should be - it was a part of the curse. If someone has a disease, we will often say that they are "fighting for their life" and they are scared to die. Why? We want to believe that the world is millions of years old and that we can somehow save the world. Why? We want to make sure we're eating healthy - especially today, a huge deal is made out of eating organic foods and such. Why? We want to live full, long, healthy lives. Right? The worst thing that could happen to us is death.
And yes, some people might think "Great! If there is no eternal torment after all and I'm just going to be destroyed, then I can just do what I want." But even if people have that (foolish) attitude how would it make the possibility of being annihilated not true? Our lives in this earth are so short; whatever pleasures someone might experience in this life really don't matter. They'll lose their lives and they'll lose everything. They might not realize it, but that in and of itself is a terrible thing; a terrible judgement. And it IS rather like being executed; receiving a death penalty - which is something that no one really wants. But anyway, like I said earlier, we shouldn't try to obey God merely to get out of a punishment.
THIS life is so short and is drawing ever shorter. Life is not going to go on like it always has, although many people think it will.
I don't intend to get in debates about this subject. I don't have a problem with debates necessarily, but it would be far better for people to study all of this in the Bible for themselves prayerfully instead of immediately thinking it must be wrong (the easy thing to do and think and want to think.) A scary thought I had is the possibility that it is those who insist that the church age will go on forever and refuse to give up many false doctrines or acknowledge that the corporate church is not the pillar and ground of the truth after all, are perhaps the ones that will be taken by surprise, and perhaps God will save everyone else (since He IS saving a great multitude.) I don't know though. But what I do know, is that those who believe they are Christians, and aren't at all, will probably come under the worse judgement. (Note: the church I speak of that is coming under judgement is NOT the bride of Christ of whom the gates of Hell will never prevail - those are the true believers. Also, I know how easy it is to think our church is not one of the ones that has fallen away - I used to think the church I attended years ago was the best in existence, too - it was a DIFFICULT thing to accept.)
I don't believe as the Jehovah Witnesses do. They believe there is no Hell (as far as I know - or that Hell is simply annilihation) and they also believe that Christ is not God. This is unBiblical. I do believe there is Hell, and what it could be is 5 months of torment (or "Hell") on this earth, beginning on May 21, 2011 and ending on October 21, 2011, when the entire world and all of its works will be entirely destroyed. But exactly what Hell is or how God intends to make it happen, I'm not entirely sure right now, but I do know that it is something terrible.
Comments are going to be disabled, not because I'm afraid of what people will say or because I think I understand these things perfectly (I most certainly don't,) but because I don't intend to get into a public debate (or debate, since that's not why I posted this) especially with people who haven't even studied these things. You can contact me personally.
Friday, August 3, 2007
Monday, May 21, 2007
7:54PM
Normally I don't care for these "Re-post this" things but this did make me laugh! :-D
***
-Go to Google.com
--Click on Maps.
--Click on "get Directions".
--From New York, New York
--To Paris, France.
--And read line # 24.
If you laugh then re-post this
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Wow, what a way to make $15000!!!
If I was married and pregnant, I don't think I'd want anyone but me and my husband to name our child even if it's possible to earn $15000 over giving the rights to naming the children to other people!!! They all made $15000 (who would spend that much money to name someone else's child?!) At least the auctioners were somewhat smart about it and said things like, "There are a few rules to this deal though. First off, the name can not be vulgar, extremely geeky, or something totally off the wall. For instance...I will not name my daughter eggbert, gertrude, apple, or Moon." LOL. And that they reserve the right to say no to a name if they don't like it. Hahaha. Those babies will have some interesting stories to tell... "I was named by a Casino!!" Crazy...I do have to admit, it was a pretty clever idea...even if I would never do it myself. :-P
Current mood:  crazy
Friday, July 7, 2006
Sunday, September 4, 2005
"What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him? If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone." James 2:14-17
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