New Age

I just found an ad that said this:

Headline: Interfaith Minister ATL

Ad: Co-create the ceremony of your dreams. Rev. Dawn speaks English, French, and Spanish.Green Weddings and multiple religious traditions.

Here is her web-site: http://www.seventhsenseproductions.com/index.htm

Just a little example of the New Age Worldview. There are no absolutes. You can be an interfaith minister. Who knew?

Reflection About a Dream

Last night I had a dream that I was sitting at a table with some high school students. There was a lull in our conversation and one of the girls said “I have an idea! Let’s go around the table and say something nice we’ve done for someone today.”

As I sat waiting for my turn I began to get anxious about what I was going to share. “Did I really do anything nice for someone else that day? Did I go out of my way to serve anyone? Am I going to disappoint these students who look up to me?” When my turn came along I don’t recall what I said, but I know it wasn’t anything exceptional. However, my students still celebrated a job well done. They then gave me a gold plaque to celebrate my good deed. I looked around and realized that each person who shared had received a gold plaque and now they were standing off to the side holding it above their head with pride. I go over and do the same. At first I felt excited and proud of myself for doing something so good that I received a reward from the students I love so much. Then I looked around and saw that some of the people around me who were holding up a gold plaque had left. Then, even more of the people had left my side, until finally I was left standing alone holding up my plaque in a stark, empty room. I began to cry out “I want more! I want more!”

When I woke up I began thinking about this dream. As a follower of Christ, I am called to serve like Christ. Many days I fail. I don’t think about the people around me, I don’t intentionally look for ways to serve them so they will better know Christ’s love. Instead I live in this bubble. I do nice things here and there throughout my day because I’m a nice person and usually it fits into my schedule. As a daughter of God, no matter what I do, or don’t do I still receive a reward at the end of the day, God’s love. You do not have to work for God’s love, he gives it to you unconditionally.

However…You can be like me in my dream and stand there holding onto your reward, but you will probably find yourself wanting more. I don’t think you will be fully satisfied unless you continue to go out and serve, Love like Jesus. This is not always comfortable and probably won’t fit into your schedule. But the more you serve like Jesus I believe you will experience more of God’s love and that will bring you true satisfaction.

Just some thoughts about another one of my crazy dreams.

Gotta Have Faith

I'm going to start blogging again. Hopefully the posts following this one will be more joyful.

My last post was written 7 weeks ago about my friend Erin B.'s celebration for being in remission for 1 year. Sadly, we got the news yesterday that the Leukemia is back. Erin's family keeps a blog http://blonshine.blogspot.com/ if you would like to follow her progress. Please keep Erin and the Blonshine's in your prayers. We can never fully understand the ways of God, but I know He is in this.

I used this verse in my last post:

"It is good to say thank you to the Lord to sing praise...Every morning tell Him, 'Thank you for your kindness,' and every evening rejoice in all His faithfulness...You have done so much for me, O Lord. No wonder I am glad! I sing for joy!" -Psalm 92

I sing God's praises through good times and now during the difficult times. God has done so much for me and for Erin and I believe He is going to continue to work through this situation. Sit down and read some of the Bible and you will read stories of God healing people of leprosy, raising people from the dead, bringing vision to the blind and allowing the lame to walk. Those aren't fairy tales of the past, but those stories really happened. Those stories are still happening everyday because the WORD IS LIVING, it is the TRUTH. The God in those stories is the SAME GOD I worship. I have faith He is going to heal Erin.

Celebrating life!

Tonight I went to the BEST party ever! Close to a year and a half ago one of my best friends, Erin Blonshine, was diagnosed with Leukemia. It was some of the most difficult news I've ever received. The journey was so hard. It was difficult to watch your friend struggle. I don't cry much, but I cried a lot during that season. But, God healed Erin and she has been in remission for 13 months!

Tonight we had a big party to Praise God and celebrate Erin's first year of remission. It started off with food and fellowship. Then there was worship with a band and a video made by Erin. The night ended with kicking off our shoes and dancing. It was truly a celebration of life!

It was so powerful to watch as Erin's mom raised her hands in true worship and praise to our King. It was such a blessing to listen to her dad pour out his heart and pray over us and speak words of gratitude. It was exciting to watch Erin hug her family and friends who walked along side her through the journey.

I found myself shedding tears again tonight, but this time tears of joy. Erin is such and amazing woman. I am so thankful to call her my friend, my sister in Christ. We have much to be thankful for. God is good.

"It is good to say thank you to the Lord to sing praise...Every morning tell Him, "Thank you for your kindness," and every evening rejoice in all His faithfulness...You have done so much for me, O Lord. No wonder I am glad! I sing for joy!" -Psalm 92



Erin's in the middle. We also had a celebration today for Denise. She graduated with her Masters from GA Tech for prosthetic and orthodoxes...if you ever loose a limb, she'll hook you up ;)



Dance Par-tay!



Cancer is defeated!

Thoughts?

I took a little blog hiatus, but I'm back. I just read this blog post on Change.org...great site to read about social issues around the world. The blog states this:

"In order to make responsible and healthy decisions, young people need - and society has a moral obligation to provide - medically accurate, age-appropriate information about sex and sexuality.

Yet, over the past decade, the federal government has allocated more than $1.3 billion for ineffective, dangerous abstinence-only programs that provide students with incomplete, medically inaccurate information that focuses solely on abstinence and provides little or no information about contraception.

President Obama has said that he supports comprehensive sex education programs that promote abstinence and provide information on contraception."

What are your thought?

Wallflower

This morning I had the opportunity to go and speak to a group of about 40-50 (I'm bad at estimating) 8th grade girls. The topic was self-respect. It was refreshing to speak to a group about something I am actually passionate about. For the past 6 years of my life I have been stuck doing presentation after presentation of information that means really nothing to me, or anyone else in the class. My favorite ones in college were my 10 minute presentations in my upper level Spanish classes. (NOT!) You think people zone out when you speak in English!

Anyway, this morning I was talking about how we all have worth, we are all needed. I asked the girls to raise their hands if they wanted to be a teacher when they grow up. One girl raised her hand. I then asked them to raise their hand if they wanted to be a doctor or nurse, and then again if they wanted to do something with computers. (many more hands were raised for those occupations) I then asked what if we all wanted to all be teachers, where would we go when we are sick? Or, what if we were all doctors, who would fix our computers? I pointed to the girl who wants to be a teacher, I looked her in the eyes and said..."see we need you to teach!" I wish you could see her face at that moment. It was one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. She was sitting in the front row kind of away from all the other students. She was not dressed like them, she looked quiet, insecure, a wallflower. The moment I pointed to her and said "we need you" everything broke free. Her eyes lite up, a huge smile swept across her face. I don't know her story, but I felt like it was the first time she ever heard she was needed. The first time anyone every noticed her in a crowd. Good way to start the day.

Sumdog Millionaire

I'm not a big "movie person." I'm cheap. But, go see Slumdog it is SO good!