Time goes by!

As the year 2011 comes to a close, and the year 2012 begins it's journey, I can't help but reminisce on this past year and realize how much God has truly blessed me! There are so many things I've accomplished this year, There are so many things God has provided, There are so many things God has worked out in a way that I would've never planned, It just reminds me once again how great God really is!
Psalm 40:5 says,
"Many, LORD my God, are the wonders you have done, the things you planned for us. None can compare with you; were I to speak and tell of your deeds, they would be too many to declare."
And that's exactly how I feel, God has done so many amazing things, and I wouldn't have enough time in the world to tell about them, what more can I say than GOD IS GOOD!!!!!
This year, I have fullfilled a few dreams of mine, I've not only been involved in one musical, but two, one of which I had the wonderful opportunity to be on stage with. I have gotten several different theatre offers, from stage managing, assistant stage managing, directing, acting, assisting backstage, writing, dancing, singing......Well, you get the point, I haven't had the opportunity to do too many shows, but God has blessed me with so many more opportunities. I have made several friends, whether it was through Peter Pan, or Singing in the Rain, or spending a little time at Jr. Camp with a few great kids. Whether it was learning how to juggle, and having the chance to meet an amazingly talented, and wonderful family, or getting to know local homeschoolers through them. God has seemed to continually bless! I got to write and direct my first project this year, I learned how to tap dance, I learned how to juggle, I got to be a counselor at Jr. Camp for the first time, and I look forward to it again next year, I was allowed to go to the Northwest Youth Conference one more year and see a whole different side of it. I, only by a miracle, graduated and received my high school diploma, and I have recently been accepted to the college I believe God wants me to go. As I said I could go on and on and on, but this past year God has blessed me so much!
That's not to say the year has been perfect, I have gone through my share of trials, temptations, and rough patches in life, and I know there will be more in the future, but there is one thing I know I can always remember. "All things work together for good" God never said times would be peachy keen, He never said it would be a piece of cake, but I just always have to remember "Trust in the Lord with all your hear and lean not unto your own understand, In all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your paths."
So, I would like to dedicate this post to all the amazing people in my life, whether it's my mom, dad, brother, or sister, my best friends, my aquaintances, or my great church family; You all have been an amazing blessing in my life, and I thank you!
As we go into the year 2012, I look forward to all that God has in store! I know there's gonna be some big steps for me to take, but I hope and pray I will always trust in God. I pray for you all every morning, I thank God every day for the blessings he has given me, and I hope that I am as much of a blessing to you all as you are to me! May God's blessings shine on you in the year 2012, and for many many many years to come! Have a Happy New Year!

The greatest gift of all

As I have Christmas music stuck in my head, My parents are wrapping presents, and I am sucking on a candy cane, I am reminded it is that time of year again. It is the most wonderful time of the year! Boys and Girls all over the world write letters to a jolly old man from the North Pole. Families gather together once again around the table for a dinner of ham and pecan pie. People dress up warm and goes from house to house, nursing home to nursing home singing carols of Santa, Reindeer, Snowmen, and Partridges in a Pear Tree. Houses are all lit up with flashing lights and inflatable characters, and movies are shown about miracles that happen on Christmas Eve. Sure, it may give you that warm, fuzzy, holiday cheer feeling, but is this really what Christmas is all about? It's one of the biggest, most expensive, most popular, and most widely known birthday parties in the whole world! People prepare for it for months upon months, and it's not just celebrating birth, it is celebrating the greatest gift ever given. God gave his one and only son Jesus to me so I could be saved. Not only that, but Jesus humbly gave of himself! Jesus gave up his place of royalty in Heaven, He came down from a perfect sinless place to a dirty sinful place and become a lowly servant. He came not for his own benefit, but He came so we could be called the sons of God! You could never have enough money in the world to afford something so special! We didn't deserve this gift and we never will, but God gave of his Son, so that we could have the gift of eternal life! So three perfect gifts, God giving of His son, Jesus giving of Himself, and the irreplaceable gift of eternal life! Christmas cookies, presents, carols and family are always fun, but I hope this season, and always we will remember the greatest gift that was ever given, and that is Jesus Christ our Lord! Merry Christmas, Have a great night, God Bless!

Luke 2:11 "Today in the town of David a saviour has been born to you; He is the Messiah, the Lord."

The most important instruction book in the world

It's the most wonderful time of the year, and it always seems to get busier and busier. I apologize for not writing near as much as I would like to, but being an eighteen year old isn't easy work. Anyway, I'll get on with my thought.
It's that time of year where you pull out the old Christmas decorations, put up the Christmas lights, and hang up your stockings, but none of that is finished until the tree is all ready. My dad is however allergic to Christmas trees, and while it would be nice to have a real tree, I've always grown up with a store-bought one, so I don't really miss the real ones, but maybe someday. Last week we pulled out our Christmas tree from the shop and put it together. To our dismay we found out half the lights weren't working, and nobody could find the ones that were broken, so we decided after ten years, we should let our family tree retire and move on to a new tree. With that we went to Wal-Mart and bought a new beautiful Christmas tree. We got home, opened up the box, and put it together lickity-split, that was the easy part. However being a pre-lit tree we had to figure how to plug it all in. We tried and tried and tried to figure it all out, and it turned out I had unplugged something that should've never been unplugged. It took us quite some time to figure out the lights, but my dad got the great idea of looking at the instruction manual. Once we knew what I did wrong, we got it right away, it was a lot simpler than we thought, and I had messed it all up. We got it all figured out in the end, and the tree is now sitting in our room looking pretty. You may be saying what does this have to do with anything. Simple! That's just like our life, God has given us a great instruction book. He has inspired it, Provided several men to write it, and He's Preserved it for thousands of years. In our life, we should pay close attention to our instruction book. Life will be so much easier if we do. We should consistently and carefully read the Bible  because God has blessed us with it. We should not just read it for the sake of reading it, but we should read it to get something out of it. We should want to read it, so we can get something from God. If we do that, it will save us a lot of trouble, a lot of problems, and a lot of work. Sure we will make some mistakes, but we should first off want to read it to prevent future mistakes, and even if we do make mistakes, we should read it to know best how to fix it. I'm so glad that God has blessed me with a Bible. There are a lot of people who don't have that privelege, and I am so blessed to own one. It contains so much wisdom, and God has given us so much to learn from in it.
I think of 2 Timothy 3:16 when it says,
"All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness"
So, I want to be more careful in my life to set aside some time each day to carefull read the instruction book God has given me. Have a great night, God Bless!

Be Happy with what you have

As the holidays are coming and going, I am reminded of how blessed we are, and yet at the same time, how selfish and greedy of a world we live in. As we all have a sinful nature, we are always wanting more. In fact, I see it as if we are little children. We are never happy with what we have, we are never satisfied. I know I've heard several times "Be happy and thankful for what you have" In fact, I've said it myself, but how often do we live what we teach? Are we happy and thankful with what we have. In my life, I have had several thoughts like that. For instance recently I have been invited to a few birthday parties, which I am very appreciative of! I hardly ever get invited to birthday parties, so I appreciate being included in them, however the next day, I see on facebook people saying that they are out doing things with their friends, having a good time, and doing stuff together, and I got jealous. I thought, why can't I be included? Why can't I be the one out doing things with my friends, and yet I forget about all the things that God truly has blessed me with. I forget about the night I had before, celebrating wit friends,, playing games and having a good time. I WAS INCLUDED!!!!!!!!! Why am I not satisfied with what I have. I have also been working on being satisfied and thankful in the theatre as well.. So many times I have auditioned for a show and been turned down. I have been put back stage, or put in the audience, or not even a part of the show at all, and I think, "Why am I not the one in the spotlight, Why can't I be the one taking a bow and have people clap for me?" I never seem to be happy with what God has blessed me with. It's not about popularity and fame, and while that's nice, It's all about glorifying God, being a blessing to others, meeting other people, and making memories that will last forever. God has blessed me by allowing me to be backstage on so many shows. Sure I've only been on stage in the spotlight for a handful of shows, but He has blessed me more than I can ever express. He is sooooooooo good! I've heard stories of children going in stores the day after Christmas and having a tantrum because they can't get a toy, while they have hundreds of dollars worth of toys at home from the day before. Am I really any better than that child? I'm not! I know being a Christian is a privelege enough, and I have been so blessed over and beyond that. So why am I not thankful for what I have. The biggest thing I have to remember is it's my sinful nature trying to get a hold of me again. I have to remember again 1 Thessalonians 5:18 when it says "In all things give thanks" So, should we get upset when we don't have everything we want? Sure, we aren't in the spotlight with everyone clapping for us, Sure we don't have a million dollar lambourghini in our driveway, but here I am on a laptop, with a roof above my head, clothes on my back, and a nice warm bed to sleep in while it's freezing cold outside. It doesn't even matter if we do have everything money can buy, we will always want more! Think of Donald Trump, does he ever seem happy? Sure, he can buy anything he ever wanted, including several marriages, but I have more than money can buy, I have eternal life! So, I have been reminded recently that I am so blessed and I should be happy, satisfied, and thankful for everything I have. Have a great night, God bless!

Is it really too early for Christmas?

Hello! I was reading on of my friends blogs the other day and she brought up a good reminder for me. I decided I would use that idea for my blog as well, and spread the reminder around. As Thanksiving is now over, all the stores go straight from one holiday to another. They hardly ever bother with Thanksgiving, they go straight from Halloween to Christmas. They start playing Christmas carols, they put up Christmas trees and wreaths, they start selling Christmas lights and Christmas clothes, and what do so many people, including myself think? It's too early for Christmas! They don't want to hear the carols until they are ready, they don't want to think about Christmas trees, and of course you never hear anyone say Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays until a few days before. Anyway, as I was reading my friends blog and thinking, I was reminded, is it ever really too early for Christmas? Christmas isn't about presents, or carols, or trees! It's not about family, or friends, or even that warm fuzzy feeling of holiday cheer! It's about celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. As I'm sure I'll write about Christmas at least once more this year, I will try and stay on point, but It's kinda like Thanksgiving. Should we only be thankful on Thanksgiving Day? Of course not, so why should we only celebrate Christmas one day a year? We should always be praising God for sending His son to this world. Without Him, we wouldn't be the same. Who knows where we would be today if He didn't. If you're like me, and Thanksgiving comes and goes around, and you begin to say, It's too early for Christmas!!!!!!!! I know I'm working on thinking again. We should celebrate Christmas all year through. So Merry Christmas, Have a Great Night, and God Bless!

What's #1 in your life

Today I have been reminded of something very important, not only in my life, but in the life of all Christians. I have been pretty busy recently, this past week I taught a lesson for the kids in my church, so I had to prepare for that, I have also been preparing for a Murder Mystery Dinner party for my dad's 50th birthday, and I've been juggling, practice, and lessons, and those all take time as well. Anyway, back to my point, I have gotten side tracked quite often recently, thinking about what I need to do next, and what's on my to-do list and things like that, and God gets pushed farther away. Each morning I determine that I am going to do my devotions, I take time each day to pray, and read, and spend time with my own Heavenly Father before I get too involved with my own wants, needs, family, or friends. This morning was one of those kinds of days, I had prayed, and spent a little time with God, however my whole focus wasn't on Him, I hadn't got out of bed yet, so I was dozing off, and thinking about other things. So, I finished praying and decided since that took so long, I would take a little break before I read my Bible. So I got out of bed and got on the computer, I was focused then on the Murder Mystery Dinner. I started writing up some papers that needed to be done for it, and her it was 3:15, I was still in my pajamas, and hadn't read my Bible yet. My awesome juggling teacher, and good buddy, Devin texted me and wanted to do a lesson today, Of course I love juggling so I jumped on it, I got in the shower, and I left for his house for the lesson, needless to say, I still hadn't read my Bible, I still hadn't spent time with God, and I was too focused on my own wants. I was too busy thinking about what I wanted to do, that God got pushed farther aside. As we were having our lesson we got talking about a book called "The Slight Edge" I haven't read it yet, but I'm hoping to shortly. It's about how everything we do in our lives can make the biggest difference, and Devin brought up something that I needed today. He said it goes for spiritual things too. The littlest thing as reading your Bible, will help you grow, and the more time you spend doing it, the better it will be for you. I didn't say too much, but it was like a kick in the pants, saying, "Hey, he's talking to you!" It was the reminder that I needed today. God should be number one in my life, As I was thinking of a verse that could go with this thought, the one that instantaneously came to mind was one of the 10 commandments.
In Exodus 20:3 it says
"You shall have no other gods before me"
So why do we? No, we don't have golden calves, or wooden statues like they had in the Bible, but we make our own things our god. We put juggling, or a Murder Mystery in front of God, and push God aside.So many times we put our own wants and needs before God. Sure, there are some times you just can't do your devotions, if you wake up late, and have to be somewhere in twenty minutes, or you're sick and can hardly move. God understands, but it's things like putting your own thoughts before God. We should all put God as number one in our life. Whether it's taking some time to read or pray, or thinking about God throughout our day, that's how we should put God as first in our life. I know God sent me a huge reminder today, and I know it's something I continually need to work on, but I know in my life, I want to put God as #1. Thanks for the great reminder Devin! Have a great night,, God Bless!

Thanksgiving what does it mean?

And thus ends another Thanksgiving holiday. It's another year, Another turkey eaten, another parade gone by,, another day where the whole country gives thanks for the harvest, friends, food and family. But is that really what Thanksgiving is about? Is it really just another day where we are thankful for the food and family we can spend it with? Thanksgiving has a whole different meaning for me! Of course we are supposed to be thankful for the harvest, family, food, and friends, but most people don't get why we should be thankful. They see it as another holiday, or another excuse to get together and eat, but is it really? Thanksgiving for me is a day specifically set aside to celebrate the blessings that God has given us. Sure, it's great to be thankful for the family God has blessed us with. Sure it's always good to sit around a table and talk about what we are thankful for as we eat a scrumptious meal, but why? God has blessed us so much! We can be thankful for salvation and His wonderful grace, We can be thankful that He has a perfect plan for our life. We can be thankful that He cares about every detail in our life, and we can be thankful that we have an eternal hope and that we know what will happen to us when this life is over. As this day is set aside for Thanksgiving to God, I believe that we should set aside a little time each day to thank God, because He has done so much for us! We shouldn't let a whole year go by and not thank Him, we should be thanking Him every day, and for every thing!
1 Thessalonians 5:18 says,
" Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus"
Times will be tough, and liife won't always be easy or fair, but it says here iin God's word that we should be thankful in all things. It doesn't say for all things, for iinstance, we shouldn't say, Lord, thank you that my life is not easy, but it says to be thankful in all things. In other words, we should be saying, Lord, even though times are tough, thank you so much that you never leave me, and that you never forsake me. I thank you so much that you work all things for good, and that you have a perfect plan for me. It won't always be easy to thank Him, we won't always understand it, but as the Bible says, give thanks in all things. So I believe as Thanksgiving day reaches it's closing we should remember in this next coming year to set aside a little time each day to thank Him for all He has done, and in all things we should be thankful! Have a great day, Happy Thanksgiving, and God Bless!

The best friend a person can ever have

Well, It's that time of year again! It's the beginning of the holiday season. Thanksgiving kicks in, then people prepare for Christmas, then New Years. Families get together and sit around the table, as they cut the Thanksgiving turkey, and pass the cranberry sauce, they share in a time of laughter, a time of joy. Time they can spend together, and memories are made forever. It's this once a year, people all over the world share what they are truly thankful for. Of course, it's not quite thanksgiving yet, but as people prepare, it's always a time of thinking for me. I don't quite have the family that I wish I did have. Due to several different reasons, my family hardly talks to each other any more. People are spread out all over the country, from Pennsylvania, to Georgia, to Alabama, to Oregon. We hardly ever receive a phone call, and aside from the occasional Birthday card or Christmas gift card, we hardly ever hear from each other. I think about family! As much as I hate to say it, I don't have the best family in the world. Of course I am blessed to have the mom, dad, sister, and brother I have, and my mom's aunt and uncle we love dearly we hear from most, but that's about it! We've had to set some boundaries. There's been too many arguments, too many split-ups, too many insults, and too many feelings hurt. I don't like it this way, but I know it had to be done. I know this all sounds depressing, but that isn't the point of my entry tonight. I want to thank God, that amidst the family I do have, no matter how disfunctional it may be, He has blessed me with friends! I have adopted grandparents, adopted aunts and uncles, adopted cousins, even adopted brothers and sisters! No, it's not quite the same, of course I wish I had a closer family, a family I could get together with on holidays and share some special memories, but God truly has blessed. Whether it's my church family, or my theatre family, or my juggling teacher and people I have gotten to know through Him, God has truly blessed me with each of these people. I am honored to know so many great people. These people are people who love me, accept me, people I trust, and people I would consider the closest "family" I could ever have! So, I would like to dedicate this first part to my great friends. I thank you for accepting me, including me, loving me, and welcoming me into your family!
In Proverbs 18:24, it says " There is a friend who sticks closer than a brother"
I can say I have many friends who are closer than family to me, but as much as I do love my friends, and I appreciate the love they have shown me, I have an even greater friend. He shows me more love than can ever be shown here on earth. He is closer to me than any brother, cousin, aunt, uncle, grandparent, parent, or even best friend to me! He is my Heavenly Father, He has showed me more love than I can ever express, and I can't thank Him enough for being the best friend I could ever have. So, while I may not have the best family in the world, I can say I have some amazing friends, and I am so thankful for them. I can also say, I have the best friend in the entire universe, I know him personally, and he has shown me more love than can ever be expressed, and I thank him for that! I hope in the following few weeks, as we each celebrate the holiday season with our best friends or our own family, we will remember the love that Christ has shown us, and may we be thankful to Him for everything! Have a great night, God Bless!

The privelege of free will

This may be an item of discussion, and I love seeing other people's point of view on things, so feel free to discuss it in the comments, I won't start any arguments, I just like thinking about other people's opinions on things.
Anyway, I have a friend who does not believe that God has given us a free will. At this point I personally believe that He has given us a free will. The first reason being, we all know that God is a good God. We all know he is loving, and kind and fair, so why would he act like we are a lottery? "A lucky few people will get to go to Heaven, and the rest of you, you are going to hell, I'm sorry, we can't have a personal relationship, and we will never be close as I am with those lucky few" It just doesn't make sense to me. Maybe you believe that it isn't just a "lucky few". Maybe you believe He sees people and decides on his favorites. I don't believe that's like God either. However I believe He has given us a free choice. In Genesis 3, we read about creation. We read how God specifically told Adam not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, However he gave him the choice. If he wanted to, he could've put an electrical fence around it. He could've put an angel standing there with a sword, such as he did when Adam and Eve were cast out of the garden. In fact, he could've never even put the tree there, but that brings us back to the choice. He wanted to give Adam and Eve the chance to choose between themselves and God. He has given us the same choice. Do we choose to do things we want to do, or do we choose to do things that would please God. You may be saying, why did he create the choice? God created the choice because it is a privelege for us. He didn't want us to turn out to be like robots "Yes master, yes master, whatever you say master" but he wanted us to show him how much we love him. If we choose his ways, he will be glorified, we will show him that we are willing to give up our own wants and needs to do whatever pleases Him. If we don't choose God's ways then we show him differently. This is a huge question in so many peoples minds. Why would God create so many people and so many are going to be sent to hell?  I know God is a loving God, the Bible says it a million times how much he does, but He is not willing that any should perish, he wants us all to be saved! It's something that could go in circles for hours upon days upon years, and we could go back and forth, but the bottom line is we just need to have faith in God. We know he loves us, we know he has a perfect plan for our life, but I believe he allows us to choose. He has given us the great privelege of free will. This is a HUGE subject. Many people have questioned this, and I have thought a lot on it myself, but I know that God loves me, He loves the whole world, and I believe that he has given me the choice. People have different opinions, and I know you may disagree with me, I totally respect that. I would love to know what you think too. Like I said, I won't start any arguments, I like knowing why I know what I know, so it'll give me a little more to think about too. Have a great night, God Bless!

Don't worry, Be Happy!

Sorry It's been a few days since I've written, I'm trying to keep up but time seems to fly by faster and faster. Anyway, those of you who know me, know that I am a recently graduated 18 year old boy who is looking for a job, so if anyone sees something available, I would love for you to leave me a comment below! Anyway, that's not the point. I have handed in around 40 applications and resumes, prayed a lot about it, and anxiously waited for a phone call.

I've gotten two phone calls, one from Subway. They called at 11:30 one morning and wanted me at an interview 35 minutes away at 1:30 the same day. Where I'm not able to drive, and my mom, who works nights, was sleeping, I was not able to do that. But that as well is not the point. I also got a call from Dairy Queen, they sounded a little more promising. They gave me an interview, were very nice, and I think the interview went very well. But sadly I never heard from them again. Needless to say, I didn't get the job. I seemed alright with it that day, but the next day it kinda hit me. Here you go again, back at the start! You have no job, and you could really use some money.

But that didn't last long. I was reminded of one of my favorite verses in the Bible. One I believe not only should everyone know, but everyone should live by it.

Proverbs 3:5-6 says
"Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight"

I couldn't have said it better myself. Trust in the Lord with all your heart, don't rely on the things you know, but in everything, turn to Him, and He will guide you each step of the way. It's as simple as that. There are so many verses in the Bible it reminds us not to worry, not to be anxious.

It says in Matthew 6:34
"Do not worry about tomorrow"

It also says in Philippians 4:6
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God"

And the very middle verse in the Bible says in Psalm 118:8
"It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man"

So why do we rely on what we know? Why do we worry so much? Why are we so anxious about everything? We should simply trust in God! We should put everything in God's hands, for he is a soverign God! He is in control of absolutely everything! Just put everything in his hands, and He will provide it all. It's not always easy, we won't always understand why He's doing what He's doing, but we shouldn't rely on our own understanding. Of course I don't understand why I have done so much work for only two phone calls, and no job offers, but He is in control of everything. So we should stop worrying, we should stop being anxious, We should stop relying on mere man, but fully trust in the sovereign God. In the words of Bob Marley "Don't Worry, Be Happy" For God is in control of it all! Have a good night, God Bless!

The Harvest is plentiful but the workers are few

It's finally November, It seems like the year is flying by before I can even think about it. It seems like yesterday we were sitting and watching the Thanksgiving Day Parade on TV, and now we are back in November.
As we enter the Fall season, I think about the leaves changing color, the cool fall breeze, apple cider, pumpkin pie, Thanksgiving, and everything I have to be thankful for. The fall season has been a season to celebrate the harvest. There are harvest festivals held all around the world, and people celebrate everything that they have grown, from pumpkins to corn we celebrate it all. As we think about the harvest season though, there is one verse I am always reminded of.

Matthew 9:37 says
"Then He said to His disciples, the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few"

Jesus is making an analogy here. He is referring to each of our lives, and everyone in the world. There are a lot of people out there, even more so he is referring to there being a lot of lost souls. The harvest is plentiful. There is a lot of work to be done, but the workers are few.
How many times do we turn down an opportunity? How many times do we turn down an excuse to be a witness for God?
We don't even have to go knocking door to door to be a witness, we can do it wherever we go. If we are a good testimony, others will see that Christ is in us, they will see that there is something different about us, and they will want it too.
So we as Christians are the workers. There are few of us, but there is a lot that needs to be done, so we should all do our part. We each need to prepare the harvest. We should examine ourselves and our everyday lives, and make sure we are a good testimony to others all around us. We also need to make sure that we don't turn down any opportunites God has set for us. He has placed us in the right place at the right time for a reason, so don't turn it down. We should be working hard, we should all do our part, and we should all prepare the harvest.

Halloween

Well, Tonight is Halloween. It's a night every year where kids and adults alike dress up, and go out and collect candy. Fun for kids of course, but is it really a holiday that would be pleasing and glorifying to God? The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 10:31 "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God" So as we think about Halloween, and what people represent on that day, is it something that would give God glory? Not everyone is going to agree with me, it's just a personal preference. I personally don't care much for Halloween, The Bible also says in 1 Thessalonians 5:22 "Abstain from all appearance of evil". When I think of Halloween, I think of ghosts, goblins, zombies, vampires, demons, devils, witches, etc. It doesn't sound like anything that would relate to God. Thinking about all those different things, I see them as evil creaturs, of course, I don't want to be a part of any of that. The Bible thirdly says in Philippians 4:8 "Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things" So when you think of halloween, do you think about anything that is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, I don't! I personally don't want to take part in it. There are many people in the world who worship the devil on such days. They hold sacrifices, and it's not pleasing to God. So while thinking about Halloween, you may not agree with me, that's your personal opinion, and I respect that, But I know I want to think on things that would glorify God!

Amazing Grace that saved a wretch like me

One of the most beloved hymns of all time is the song Amazing Grace. It is played on the bagpipes, the trumpet, the piano, and the electric guitar. It's sang, hummed, whistled, and so many people in the world know the song. But do they really understand it?

I sing the song myself, and I think about the Amazing Grace that God has given me. There are people in the world, who sing the song and love it, but they have never experienced that Amazing Grace. God sent his one and only son into the world to bear a cross so that a undeserving wretch like me could be saved. I will never deserve it, I will never earn it, But because of God's Amazing Grace he saved me! I once was lost, but Jesus found me. I once was blind but now I see. If it weren't for God's Amazing grace I would not be the person I am today, and I am so thankful for His gift of grace.

The Bible says in Ephesians 2:8-9
 "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works, so that no one can boast"

I think so many people take it for granted what they have, they sing the song casually, but they never fully understand it. They sing, I once was lost, but now I'm found. Are they really found? I definately don't take God's Amazing Grace for granted. It's something I have never, and never will deserve, and it's nothing that I can earn, but I praise God for the Amazing Grace that saved me! Have a great night, God Bless!

The Light of the World

Tonight I was reminded of a very simple idea, but so often we can forget about it. I went to church tonight, we sang, prayed, and got into the message. About half way through the message the power went out. Everything turned off, all the lights, computers, and everything that ran on electricity turned off.

We also had that happen about 14 years ago. It was the same situation, A Wednesday night service, but people handled it a lot better this time than they did last time. Anyway, back to may point. Last time we had the power go out, we didn't have hardly any light. We had no emergency lights, hardly anyone had a cellphone back then, and even those didn't give out much light, if any. Parents were rushing around trying to find their children. Little kids were crying, teenage girls were screaming, people bumping into each other, lets just say, it got a little crazy.

Tonight however was made a little easier. Since then, our church has gotten some emergency lights, almost everyone in the world now has a cellphone, and some of the lucky ones had a bright light from their ipod. Unfortunately some of the emergency lights didn't work, but everyone stayed calm, and everyone got out of church safe and sound. As I was sitting in the pew, thinking about what I could really take out of this circumstance, I was reminded that we live in a very dark world. There are so many people who are lost, they don't know where they are going in the world. They are running around trying to figure a way out. They're trying to find a way to see, but we have a light. It's not mass chaos in our lives. We aren't running around trying to see.We once were blind, but now we can see!

Jesus says in John 8:12
" I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."

So we have the light. We have a way that we can see. We aren't going crazy, but we need to use our light to help others, so they can see.

Tonight, as we were trying to help people out to their cars, we were using our cell-phones and flashlights and ipods, and we all walked out of the room calmly. People got in their car and went home. Everyone helped each other, and that was because we each had a way to see. We each had a light. So we should do that in our life too. We should take the light we have and use it so others can see the way too.

I don't know about you, but I want to use the not-so-little light of mine, and let it shine for others. Have a Great night, God Bless!

Jesus loves all the children of the world

In the day and age we live in, there are so many misconceptions. So many people think that homosexuality is okay, they think sexual interaction before marriage is okay, they think divorce is okay, they think using God's name in vain is okay, and we face so many things in our life. There is one specific thing that we face in our life that so many people have a misconception about. LIFE. When you think of a baby you think about the precious life that God has blessed you with. The cute little face, the sweet belly laugh, the heart stopping sound of them saying mommy or daddy for the first time. Their first steps, their first words, the chance they have to graduate highschool, or get married. So many lives have not had that chance.

Abortion, it's a strong subject in this day and age. It's another choice parents have to make in their life. Whether to keep the life God has blessed them with or take away that life. Of course it's not easy taking care of a baby, of course it's going to be a rough road ahead, but the precious moments and the precious lives that God has given is always worth it all. There are approximately forty-two MILLION lives a year that don't have a chance to live.

The misconception that people have about abortion is that it is okay to kill an unborn child. So many people believe that life begins at birth. They believe that they don't exist until they enter the world, But there are several scripture verses to back up that life begins at conception. The second God molds both of those cells together, God has made a life. The Bible says in Leviticus 17:11 "For the life of a creature is in the blood" So life begins as soon as they are formed. As soon as God creates them in the womb they have blood, they were created that way, and they already have life. Another verse to back it up is Exodus 20:13 " You shall not murder" When committing abortion, you are making the decision to murder a precious life. The third point to back up this misconception is that Jesus himself loved the little children. In the Bible there is a story, and Jesus is teaching some people. Some little children come up and want to hug Jesus, sit on his lap, and talk with Him. They want to meet the saviour of the world, but the disciples didn't want that to happen. They turned the children away, but Jesus loved those little children. He wanted the little children to come see him and talk to him. He tells the disciples in Matthew 19:14 " Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them." He loved the little children and so should we. What if our parents had made the decision to abort us. They didn't think they were ready for the responsibility, where would we be today. We would never have had the experiences we've had. We never would have had the opportunity to experience the world, but God has blessed us with the life we do have. The once decision to take away life will affect the future forever. The precious life could grow up to be a pastor and God could use Him to save millions of souls. The precious life could grow up to be the President of the United States. The precious life could someday be a mother or father and create other wonderful lives. I have personally heard stories of people who would do anything to get their child back. They didn't have the chance to experience life because they died in a womb, or at a young age. So why do people take those lives for granted?  We should have a genuine love for all precious lives, whether born or unborn, they are all precious in God's eyes. Have a great night, God Bless!

God will provide

Sorry It's been a few days since I've written, I've had quite a bit going on lately, but I'm back! It's given me some time to think, and God has reminded me of a lot of things. Last night, I went to a movie shoot. A few of my friends are filming a local independent film, and I got to be an extra in it. In between takes, and scenes, we got a chance to talk and to fellowship a little bit, and they were sharing with me how much God has blessed through the whole process. One of the big things is finding specific locations to film. They don't have an location scout, so being busy with the movie, they don't have that much time to look for locations for future scenes. They have been blessed so many times with that. At the last minute God will provide the perfect places for them. Yesterday they were filming a scene for a Barn Dance, and they needed a Barn for their dance. The filming began at 5:00, and they hadn't found anything. They looked hard, they prayed, and at 3:15 God provided the perfect place. It was a beautiful Barn, it worked perfectly for the dance, they emptied it all, strung up some Christmas lights, and viola! That's the same in our life, so many times we are working hard on doing something, figuring out what we need to do next, we worry about how we are going to pay for something, we worry about our family members and loved ones, we worry about food, clothes, even ourselves, and so often we rely on our own strength, and we always worry about how we will figure it all out. But in God's perfect timing, according to His perfect plan, he provides it all.

Philippians 4:19 says,
"And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus"

So why should we worry about anything? It says that God will provide all of our needs. It may not always work out like we would have hoped, it may not always work out like we wanted, but God will work it all out, according to His perfect plan, and in His perfect timing, because He is always good! Have a great day, God Bless!

Make God the hub and everything else the spokes

As I said in my last entry, Satan tries anything and everything to get a hold of us, and we have to be especially careful not to fall into Satan's trap.

This morning as I woke up, I realized that I was facing that same battle. I've had a lot to do recently, I knew I had to get started studying, I knew I really wanted to get in some juggling practice because I love it, I've been thinking about the theatre, because it's also something I love, and I just didn't feel like doing my devotions. But in each of our lives we have to make a decision. So many people today are so busy, they have a hard time prioritizing, and putting one thing as the main priority in their lives.

We read in Exodus 20
"You must not have any other god but me"

We realize that this is the story of Moses, and he is alone with God as they are making the ten commandments. What Moses didn't know, right under his feet, his own people that he had saved from slavery were making a golden calf. God had just rescued them from Pharoah and his army, and they got impatient, so they relied on a golden statue to lead them. Of course it didn't work. But in our life we can have gods too. Sometimes in our life we get so busy. So many things are on our agenda we don't even consider spending time with God. We know we have to do things, then we have things that we want to do, but do we ever consider what God would like. He wants to have a personal relationship with us. He wants to spend time with us. He wants us to grow closer to him, and He wants us to be more like him, but without the time we spend with him, it won't happen. We should put God first in our lives. Whether it's just doing our devotions, or going and doing something that God would want us to do, we should base our lives on God.

Whenever I think about this, I picture a captain's wheel that you would find on a ship. You picture the big wheel, it has all the spokes that you can hold on to, and help you turn it. But then you have the main hub, the center of the wheel. It controls the whole thing. All of the spokes surround it, and the hub is the primary controller. In our lives, everything we want, everything we need, those should be the spokes, they should all surround what God would have for us, and we should let God control it all. I know there are gods in my life that I need to work on. Is God the hub in your life? Have a great night, God Bless!

World War III

In our life as Christians, we are going through an eternal war, World War III. It's been going on since the beginning of time, and it'll be going on until God's final judgement. It's the battle of good versus evil. Our heart is God's throne, and Satan wants to take over that throne. If we don't have a personal relationship with Christ, Satan is on the throne. However if we do know Jesus Christ as our personal saviour, then the Holy Spirit is living in us. God has given us the free will to choose what we want, whether it's good or evil, and we have to make that choice in our life. There are two roads in our life.......

Matthew 7
"Enter through the narrow gate, for wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it."

.......The straight and narrow or the long and windy.

The straight and narrow always seems appealing, "Everyone else is taking it!" it won't be as much work, it will be easier to take, but the end of the road leads to destruction. It'll be a dark road, there will end up being many obstacles we have to overcome. It may seem appealing, but it leads to destruction.

The long and windy road seems a lot less appealing. Hardly anyone else is taking it, It will take a lot longer, and will be very tiring. If we choose that road, we will have a light. God will be our light. He will hold our hand and guide us each step of the way. Of course there will still be obstacles, but He knows exactly what He's doing, and He'll help us get past them all. The most important thing, is that the long and windy road leads to everlasting life. Something we will never experience anywhere else.

Day after day Satan is closely watching us, He's stalking us, and seeing the perfect oppertunity to take us down.

The Bible says in 1 Peter 5:8,
"Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour"

He is trying to take the throne away from God, and as the verse says, we need to be alert and self-controlled, We need to watch for the tempation he will send our way.
Satan is going to do anything he can to trap us, whether it's making us too busy and taking time away from God, or filling our mind with junk that we don't need in our life. This is an ugly world we live in. We live with television, internet, magazines, perverted jokes, innapropriate language, even friends that could influence us wrongly, and Satan will use all of that to control us. But we as Christians need to fully rely on God.

We can't do anything in our own strength, without God we wouldn't be where we are today. He has a perfect plan for our lives, and He will guide and protect us each step of the way.

As we face the battle from day to day, we need to remember Ephesians 6 as it says,
"Finally, Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. "

So all we have to do is be strong in the Lord and let Him prepare us. We will face a strong battle in our life, but if we put on the whole armor of God, we will be able to
stand against the devil's schemes, and God will give us the victory in the war. Have a great day, God Bless!

Having Genuine Faith in God

It's been a wonderful day! I always enjoy Sundays, a day you can put aside just for God. You can spend the whole day at church and really enjoy it. With going to church, there are so many things that God has shown me. Not to mention my devotions this morning, God has been speaking a lot today, but it's been great! Anyway, I wanted to share with you an illustration that really hit home for me this morning. My pastor used it in his sermon this morning, and knowing him, it wasn't an original illustration either, but it was very good.

There are several verses in the Bible that talk about faith. In fact the word faith is used 247 times in the Bible. There are so many important things about faith. The biggest thing is, we need faith in God alone. We need faith that He sent His one and only son to die for us, we need faith that God has forgiven us from all of our sins, and we need faith that He has saved us. If you really think about it, aside from God, the basis of Christianity is faith. No matter what our religion is, we need to have faith in it in order to believe it. If you think about atheists, they have their own faith. They have faith in their own power and that there is no God. Evolutionists have that same kind of faith. They have faith that things just happened by coincidence. We as Christians also have faith. We have faith in God. If you think about it, everyone has a faith of one kind or another. Thinking about us as Christians though, do we have genuine faith in God?

Hebrews 11:6 says,

"And without faith it is impossible to please God"

If you read all of that same chapter, Hebrews 11 is the chapter of Faith. It lists off many people in the Bible who had real genuine faith. People such as Abel, Enoch, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Sarah, Joseph, Moses, The Egyptians, Joshua, Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, Rahab, and that's just the beginning of examples in the Bible of faith. Do we have the same kind of faith these people had?

Paul said in 2 Timothy 4:7,

"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith"

Can we say that in our lives, "I have kept the faith"?
But what does it mean to have real genuine faith?
Sure it's easy to say, "I Believe in God, I'm trusting in Him, I'm relying on Him, I'll do whatever he tells me to do" But is that really true in our lives. Our we saying that in our head or in our heart?

There was a man by the name of Charles Blondin. He is known for his dangerous feats of crossing over Niagara Falls on a 3 inch Manila tightrope. He did it several times in fact. He did it once normally, he once did a backwards somersault, he also did it blindfolded. He crossed while pushing a wheelbarrow, he crossed on stilts, he did it in the dark with Roman candles flaring from the ends of his balancing pole, he even stopped once and cooked an omelet on a portable stove and lowered it down to a boat below him. But one specific time took a real leap of faith, not for him, but for everyone watching. This one specific day, before he went up to the tightrope, he looked at the audience and said, "Do you believe I can carry someone across the rope on my back?" The crowd roared with thunderous applause, "Of course you can, You can do it, I know you can, We believe you can" So he took their word for it. He then asked the encouraging audience for a volunteer, the crowd stood silent. Nobody to volunteer? Of course they thought he could do it, but they didn't have enough faith to let him try it on them. Charles pointed to one man and said, "How about you, sir?" to which the man replied," Hardly, you don't think I'd risk my life like that do you?" Obviously he didn't have genuine faith. He turned to another man and said, "What about you? Will you trust me?" This man was a different story, He said, "I believe, In fact, I have no doubt at all, I will!" So this man crossed the tightrope, on the back of Charles Blondin. He had genuine faith. Do we?

Are we willing to give everything we have, and let God carry us each step of the way? He created us, He knows everything about us, He has a perfect plan for us, so why not trust in Him? As it says in Hebrews 11:6, if we want to please God, we need to have faith in Him. I know I need to work on that. I believe we all do. Sometimes it's easy to forget who God really is, but we need to have genuine faith in Him. We need to not only say in our heads, but in our hearts, "I will trust you" and in return we will be able to say, "I have kept the faith" Have a great night, God Bless!

Life isn't always fair, but God always is!

    Hello Again, I'll try not so say hello every time I post something, but I have been thinking about this journal all day. It's been an interesting challenge for me, if you can really call it that. I think in each of our lives, God is trying to show us something, He's trying to help us grow closer to Him, help us to be more like Him, and help us to grow in our relationship with him. No matter what happens in our lives, I believe that God will use each circumstance, whether good or bad, to help us see him. The Bible does after all say in Colossians 1:17

 "And He is before all things, and by Him all things consist"

 It also says in Psalm 19:1

 " The Heavens declare the glory of God, the skies proclaim the work of his hands".

    So, if you ask me, whatever we do, wherever we go, if we look close enough, we can learn something from God. So as I was thinking about what to say in my entry tonight, God showed me a few things, so I thought I'd share too. Some of the simplest things, but even in the simplest things, God can use them as a learning experience.

    Tonight we decided to play a board game, the game "Life". For those of you who don't know that game, it's basically like life. You go to college, get a job, get a salary, get married, have kids, buy a house, and retire. Then you have all the fun stuff such as "You've won a beauty pageant, collect $10,000" or "Family picnic, collect a life tile", but sometimes the game doesn't go quite the way you have planned. Sometimes you lose money, Sometimes people read the directions wrong, and you don't get the benefits of going to college you should've gotten. Sometimes you don't get the house you'd like, or the salary you want. Which made me realize, it really is like Life. Sometimes it's just not fair! Sometime it doesn't go like you planned, a speed bump gets in your way, or you have to make a rough decision. Sometimes you lose something, or someone that you really wanted to keep close. Sometimes there will be arguments in life, and sometimes there will be misunderstanding, and things won't go the way you would've liked.

    Of course, Life isn't always fair, but it really reminded me, God is good! He always is! He is always fair, and even though we don't always understand what's going on, He knows exactly what He's doing. If you really think about it, God is fairer than fair. The whole world consists of sinners, and while we deserved nothing, God gave us everything! He gave us eternal life, and that's better than any "life tile" we could collect, or any "family picnic" we could hold. Once we get to Heaven, we will receive what we really don't deserve. But God has loved us enough to give us eternal life. 1 John 1:9 says

" If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. "

    So while it may not seem like our life is fair, even though we don't always have things the way we would like them, God is fairer than it can ever get, and he always will be! So today, even through something as simple as a family board game, I was reminded that God is always good, and even though life isn't always fair, God always is, and we can always rely on that!
     Have a good rest of the night, God Bless!
                                                                                                 ~Daniel~ :)

Hi There!

Hi there, my name is Daniel, allow me to introduce myself. I am an 18 year old boy that lives in a little town of Southern Oregon. I love it here, I was born a few towns over because we didn't have a hospital here, but I have lived and been raised here my entire life. I am the middle child in a family of five. I live with my mom, dad, younger brother, and older sister. Of course we're not perfect but I love my family to death. I go to a local Baptist church where I have my second family, I have grown up with so many people, and aside from my immediate family, I have a rough family life. Sadly I hardly talk to anyone in my family, uncles, aunts, cousins, grandparents, etc. The only one I talk to on a regular basis is one of my uncles and for the time being that's because until he gets back on his feet, he'll be living with us. I wish I had a better family life, but for different reasons, God had different plans. Although what I have lost in family he has made up in loved ones. Church family of course is a big part of my life I have adopted so many people out as my "grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc." that God has blessed me so much with. No, it's never quite the same seeing families get together on Thanksgiving, all ninety nine of them (just exaggerating a little) and sit and laugh around the table. Play monopoly with the cousins, go out fishing with grandpa, go to all the cousins birthday parties and have a great time, but as I said before, God has blessed me so much! My church family is very special to me, they invite us over for holidays, we get to spend birthdays with them, and while it isn't quite the same, God sure gets pretty close. Another special family is my theatre family. I love the theatre, it's a big hobby of mine. I can't seem to get enough of it. Stage managing, acting, singing, dancing, etc. I love it all. I have been in several local shows, and involved in a few different theatres in town, God has surely blessed with that too. I always come home thanking Him for the wonderful times, the wonderful experiences, the great opportunities, and the amazing friends he has given me. I have a lot of adopted family there too. I love everyone I have ever been involved with. Of course I've been through some rough patches, It's not an easy profession at all, but it all ends up great in the end. I have met some amazing people in that. I have no job yet, but I'm earnestly looking for one right now. It's not easy, but I keep reminding myself that God will provide in His perfect timing, because after all, He has a perfect plan for my life, so why should I ever doubt that. Another thing I love besides the theatre is juggling, It's a new passion of mine. Of course it can get discouraging from time to time dropping the balls over and over and over and over, but God has truly blessed me with that too. I have a wonderful teacher, who is a great inspiration to me. He's always encouraging me, and helps me stay on track. He's been giving me lessons for the past few months now, and I think I'm finally starting to get it down. My teacher is a great guy, He knows who he is, so I won't bother mentioning names in case he would prefer me not to say it online, but He's a great guy, I'm always bragging about him. If he wasn't my teacher I probably would've quit long ago, but He's a little younger than I am, always has a great positive attitude, is a homeschooler, and most importantly a great Christian. I'm proud to call him a friend. He also has an amazing family. The parents are great, and there are eight kids in his family. They as well are a real inspiration to me. You can tell that they geniunely love each other. You can tell they truly love the Lord, and they are always so welcoming to me. Always giving me hugs as I see them, and before I leave, and always showing me love as well.They have been a real inspiaration, and joy to be around. The Lord has truly blessed me a lot with them too. So now you know a little bit about me, about my family, my church, theatre, and juggling. Since I'm on the subject of one of my good friends, I'd like to tell you a little bit about my friends too. I am so thankful for all of them. I love them a lot too. They've made some great sacrifices for me, and I know I would do the same for them as well. I have friends all over, whether it's teaching me juggling, from the theatre, or at church, I am so thankful God has blessed me with them. They have kept me accountable to God, and I couldn't ask for much better than that. They as well show a real love for God, and they always show me love too. They are always there for me, we can tease around, or be serious and talk about some deep stuff. God has been so good with the friends He has given me. I now feel bad for my family though, I have been so busy talking about how wonderful other people are, I forgot to mention how wonderful they are. As I said, there aren't many left in my life. For some reasons or another, I don't talk to hardly any of my outside family any more. But God has blessed me with my immediate family. A brother who, even though throws things on the floor of our room just so he doesn't have to take care of them, or sleeps in until late in the afternoon, or procrastinates, God has blessed me with a great brother, we mess around a lot, have a lot of the same friends, wrestle around, even though dad won't let us much, and talk about a lot of stuff, even though I still have a few secrets up my sleeve. He's a great brother. We tease my sister a lot too, which brings me to her. She can spend five hour straight in the bathroom, use up all forty gallons of hot water on one shower, leave hair in the bathroom sink, and a few other thngs, you wouldn't care to know about. She's a great sister. She has a love for people, and shows it.We tease her a lot, but as we say, we tease her because we love her. She's just another puzzle piece to God's perfect plan. Which now brings me to my mom and dad. I am so blessed to have the parents I have. My mom is hard working, she works on a regular basis as a nurse at the hospital. She as well loves people and does whatever she can to help. Dad is the Mr. Mom of our family. It's always different having a stay at home dad, and a mom that works, but it's another one of those things, that God has a perfect plan for. I wouldn't have it any other way. Of course if he could work I absolutely know without a doubt he would, but he is almost totally blind, and can make things difficult for him sometimes. he's a real inspiration in my life. My parents have been committed to each other for the past twenty-five years. Not too many people in this day and age can say that they have two parents in the same house that have been together for so long, It's a sad thing, but it's true, and God has truly blessed me with them. Then there's me, the middle child. Always the odd one out, I have a little bit of my mom in me, a little bit of my dad, and a lot of........well we don't know where I got it, but God still has a perfect plan for me. So now you know my family too, I love them a lot, and while it's not always easy, God always works it out. I am a Christian and I wouldn't have it any other way, I was saved at the young age of five, so I've grown up with the wonderful relationship of Christ working in me. I don't have much of a testimony, but if you'd like me to share it, I'd be more than happy to. Just leave me a comment, and I know that even though it's not much, God still did a wonderful work in me. Which brings me to God, He's my rock, my shield, my fortress, my strength, my defender, my all in all, and that doesn't even begin to describe what He is to me. Without Him I couldn't do anything. He loved me enough to send His one and only son to die for me on the cross. He saved me, ME!!!!!!! A lowly undeserving sinner, but he loved me enough to do that for me. He's forgiven all my sins, past present and future, and even though I don't deserve it, He has guaranteed me eternal life in Heaven, and He can do the same for you. Which is the whole reason for this journal. The title of it isn't much, it has no catchy name, but it says above "Daniel Pierce   ~ Doing All for God's Glory~" and that's exactly what I want in my life. The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 10:31 " So whether you eat, or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God" It's a command in the Bible. One of the biggest questions in the world today is "Why am I here", or "What is the purpose of life" and that's exactly what the answer is, God made us to glorify Him, and that's exactly what I want to do in my life. I want to do everything for His glory! I know this journal entry was a little long, my future ones should be shorter, but I am going to try and update it with things that God is showing me, whether it's through his word, through a song, through a personal experience, or just something He reminds me of, I want to share it with you too, and I hope it'll be a blessing to you, as much as it is to me. I would love to hear some feedback too. I like seeing different people's points of view on different subjects, so feel free to follow my journal, comment on the entries, and discuss it, I want to know what you think too! Sorry again it was so long. Have a great day, God Bless!                                                                                           ~Daniel~ :)