But the LORD God called to the man and said to him, ‘Where are you?’ Genesis 3:9

So, I’m going to be honest with all of you. I have separation anxiety (along with abandonment issues, but more on that later). I’m not to fond of the idea of someone I know, love, and trust leaving me, even if its for a short period of time. This has happened quite a bit within the last few months, but even more so throughout my life. I’m working on it. But I want to bring up the concept of God having separation anxiety.

Now, you may be thinking that I have jumped off the deep end with this, but hear me out. I am thoroughly aware that God does not have needs, that He is thoroughly complete with Himself, He doesn’t need us.

So, how can He have separation anxiety? Take a look at the verse again. Even better idea! Check out Genesis 3. The fall of man. The moment we sinned, we were separated from God. The beautiful, harmonious relationship between God and man was severed. This form of separation is the worst that anyone will ever feel. God does not want to have our sin separating us from Him for all of eternity.

What are we doing to mend this relationship? Are we even trying at all? I encourage you to dedicate your life to God (if you have not already) and mend the relationship, but it’s not possible on your own. God works on us the moment we dedicate and start our relationship with Him. He brings trials into our lives, that draws us closer to Him (more on this soon!).

If you ever have any comments/questions, feel free to comment below!

God Bless

Ben Breedlove was 18 years old when he died on Christmas Day in Austin, TX. He suffered from HCM (hypertrophic cardiomyopathy) a heart condition that causes the myocardium (the muscle in the heart) to thicken, causing problems when pumping out blood. A week before he died, he left two videos (This is my story:Part 1 and Part 2) talking about how he had cheated death three times.

I saw the videos, and I also looked at the videos where he and a few of his friends give advice about different things. I began to like him. He seemed so happy, so full of life, even though he might not live the following day. He accepted death, but until then, he lived life, and that to the fullest.

Realizing all of this, I started thinking, Am I okay with death? Am I living life to the fullest? Am I making a difference? For me personally, I would have to answer either no or sometimes. As a Christian, I should be able to confidently say yes to those questions. What can I do to change this? Find my identity in Christ, know that my life is in God’s hands, serve in every way possible (without burning out, a post about this will come soon, I can feel it!), and lastly, love God to the fullest.

I never met this young man, but he has changed my view on life, as well as many others. My prayers go out to his family, friends, and community.

Ben Breedlove’s Obituary

I hope to meet him one day in heaven.

So, what is it that truly matters in the Christmas story? It’s the fact that Jesus stepped out of eternity and became a man. That God gave up His Son so that we may have a chance to spend all of eternity with Him. That Jesus gave up every right to be selfish, and decided to be one of us.

But how does all of this link to the baby in the manger? That baby grows up to be Man on the Cross. He grows up to be Jesus Christ, the Messiah, the King of Kings, the Man who will come back again. I fear that many of us forget to have that baby grow up, that we don’t connect Him to the Man that rose again on that first Easter morning, the Man who gave up His life for us. We need to see that connection, that growth, because if we don’t, then Christmas can become another commercialized holiday.

This winter season, will you let the baby in the manger stay there? Or will you let the Child we call our Savior grow up?

The choice is yours…

• Further Reading:
• Isaiah 7
• Matthew 1:18 – 2:12
• Luke 2
• Isaiah 53
• John 3:16

I have personally dealt with divorce in my own family. My parents split up the summer before my 6th grade year of school. I tried so hard to get them back together, but all my works were in vain. My parents never got back together, and never will. How is an 11 year old supposed to deal with this? Is there even a way to? I never really found a way other than self mutilation. I have stopped harming myself since, but it wasn’t until recently that I realized a few things:

• This song was exactly how I felt all of these years. I mean, I knew what the song was about, but I never really paid attention to it until I listened to The Light Sides version of the song.
• The title of this post describes my relationship with my father. He has never really been involved with my life even before the divorce. I wanted a father, I wanted my father. I needed him. He made so many promises to me as a child, but he has broken every promise that he made. Now, he still makes them, but I can’t believe them. I want to believe him.
• There has been a void in my life because of his absence.
• Last but not least, God is my Father.

It’s a crazy concept to try and accept that someone you cannot see physically is your parent. I’m still trying to grasp that concept even now. God has been there through thick and thin. He has seen me cry, hurt, sick, everything. He has always been a father to me whether I realized it or not. He has, and always will be the best father I’ve ever had.

You might be thinking that I’m going to be bashing on those that read paraphrases, but I have read them too and I do not want to come across as a “holier than thou” type of person, but I want to bring something up to some Christians today that want to spread the Gospel and gain souls for the kingdom. Or for those of us that would like to have an easier grasp on the Word.

Let me ask this: Where do we draw the line with translations? People have come up with comic/magna Bibles, paraphrases that condense many paragraphs into a single paragraph, etc. But now, now there are “bibles” that make a mockery of the Christian faith. I just feel like the world will see these biblical parodies and either take it seriously, or not take us Christians seriously. This can cause many issues in spreading the Gospel.

What are we doing to stop this? What are we doing to preserve the Word of God? I’m going to be honest and throw myself under the bus. I haven’t done a thing. Part of it is because of ignorance, but the rest is out of fear. How will people see me? How will I be treated? These questions should not matter because I know who I am in Christ. I think a good effective way to make the Gospel real and get it to people is by living for God and dying to self. If more of us Christians did this, the less people could take the LOL Cat Bible and other mockeries seriously.

I encourage you to take a stand with me in preserving God’s Word. Let us live lives that are outside of ourselves, for God. Let us be true Christians.

Further Reading:

• Matthew 16:24-28
• Matthew 28:16-20
• Mark 8:34-38
• Romans 12:1-2
• Romans 12:9-21
• Galatians 2:15-21
• 2 Timothy 2
• The Master’s Indwelling by Andrew Murray
• The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer

Karlee (the little girl) touched many lives during the time that she was here on earth. She made everyone smile! And her death came quickly and caused much pain. Many people would say that she never got to live, that her life was cut short. But do we really know that? If you met her, you could see that she was living life to the fullest, even while in the hospital. God has a plan for all of this, and even though much pain has hit many, especially her parents, God has not forsaken us. He is still in control.

One of the things that has completely changed my life through this is that Stephanie, Karlee’s mother, wants to give out of her loss. “Karlee loved playing in playgrounds. I want to build a playground.” I have no idea if I would ever be able to do something like this, let alone say it after losing my only child. But this just shows how God is working in her life, even though it is hard right now.

I would ask that you look at Stephanie’s statement, and just see how God is working in your life, whether things are going great or not. Whatever the circumstance, you will see just how blessed you are and how present God is in your life. If you can, please pray for Stephanie and her family, it would be greatly appreciated.

It’s that time of year where we empty our bank accounts (and sometimes go into debt! yikes!) and get together with friends and family. Some of us may even donate to a homeless shelter or feed the homeless, but why do we do this? Does it only happen at this time of year? Or does Christmas time bring terrible memories and/or grief? Whatever this time of year causes you to feel, one thing does not change. What is that you ask? The purpose of Christmas.

Gifts are great, but not everyone receives a tangible gift. There is one gift that can be received at any time of the year. What is this gift you ask? Salvation. Who gives us salvation? A Child.

Say what?! How can a Child save us? What does He save us from? What has this Child done? Questions like this may flood your mind, as they have mine at some point in my life. This Child is not like the child we see sitting in the cart at the grocery store, or the child we babysit for our neighbors or friends. This Child is different.

Over two thousand years ago, a Child was born to a young couple during the time that the Roman Empire was at it’s height. And it was during this time that the Child grew up, and impacted the world in such a way that would change lives for all of eternity. This Child grew up to be known as Jesus Christ, the One we call our Savior, Messiah. He lived a perfect, sinless life; He died on the cross for all of mankind to defeat death, come back from the dead, and give us eternal life if we believe in Him.

But before all of this happened, He had a beginning. Christmas is often celebrated as the birth of Christ. And in the midst of gift giving, presents, friends and family, we lose sight of the Child we call our Savior. I lose sight of it too, but this year, I don’t want it to be lost in the mix of everything. I want to encourage you to do the same. Remember the Child we call our Savior.

Further Reading:
- Isaiah 7
- Luke 2

Further Media:
- Hawk Nelson – Alleluia (music link)
- The Nativity Story (movie)

I liked some boys as I was growing up. I never dated anyone until high school. I had my first kiss at 17. It was with one of my really good guy friends that I was dating at my high school. I was in love, or so I thought. I wouldn’t just jump into a relationship, unless I cared about someone and it was real. The relationship ended terribly, resulting in rape, pregnancy, and a miscarriage. He was fine with everything, but how was I? I was crushed. No words can express the loss of a child, let alone your first. I felt like dying. I wanted death. Shortly after that, I went off to college. I enjoyed my first semester, and I met my best friend. He is one of the sweetest guys I know, and he knows how to be a true friend. He was able to point me in the right direction for healing. I am not going to hide the fact that I do have feelings for him (as he has them for me as well), but we are waiting on God to see if anything will grow from our friendship again. You must be wondering, “Again?” Yes, again. We dated during my second semester of college (I am nearing the end of my third semester), and got engaged the same semester. Many people will see that and say that I jumped into a relationship too fast, thus putting me in the second category. We broke up at the end of summer for various reasons, and since have been friends. It has been hard, but we have worked different things out to where we can be friends and it will not hurt as much anymore.

Where am I going with this? That is an excellent question! I am sure you never expected to read a story about a 19 year old’s relationships, but hear me out. There was a person that was mentioned only once in the story, and He is thoroughly important. God. He has been there, through it all with me even if I didn’t acknowledge Him. He saw me cry and hurt. He knew about the sleepless nights I would have. But why didn’t He take away all of my pain? Because He is forming me into the woman He wants me to be, not just for life, but for my future husband. During this time of singleness, I need to focus on Him, and I encourage you to do the same. He knows what love truly is because He is love. Let Him be your new love, and your only love. And for all you couples out there, keep Him first, He’ll bless your relationship far more than you could ever expect!

Further reading:

• 1 John
• The Four Loves by C.S. Lewis