Monday, July 29, 2013

Homosexuality - Let's Start with Love

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Have you ever asked yourself what does love require of me? Jesus Christ tells us to love one another because we owe that to our Heavenly Father for loving us first. (John 13:34-35)  We ask you again what does love require of you? Let's talk homosexuality. Homosexuality is a big topic in many communities including the Christian community. One reason is that Followers of Christ believe homosexuality is a sin. Yes, it is a sin against the body. All sexual sin (fornication, adultery, masturbation, etc.) separates us from God. (Matthew 15:19, Galatians 5:19, Ephesians 5:3, 1 Timothy 1:10) We must remember God loves the sinner, but hates the sin. God loves the sinner so much that Christ died. (Romans 5:8) God hates sin so much, He believed the wages for it was death on the cross. (Romans 6:23) We have to remember to flee from all sins from porn, masturbation, selfishness, greed, pride, adultery, drunkenness, lying, disobeying our parents, hating our enemies, including the homosexuality and many others. If you are offended by what we are saying, I challenge you to go to God and ask Him why you are feeling the way you are.

We do not promote abuse, hatred, and fear of sin including homosexuality. We promote truth and loving one another as Christ loved us. If this statement bothers you, we challenge you to go to God and ask Him why you are feeling the way you are. As Followers of Christ, we cannot say that we love God and hate our brother for we are liars. (1 John 4:20) We are to check our hearts when we are confronting others on sin and do it with love paired with truth and not hate. As Christ did for us. 

We challenge you to forget all the stereotypes. Let go of the fear. Chase after God. Confess and be honest about your sins to Him. Read about Jesus Christ (New Testament) for yourself. How can you follow Christ if you know nothing about Him for yourself? Use the Bible to talk to people and NOT about them. Pray for courage and faith. Figure out what does love require of you. Discover and find your identity in the One who created you. We all have a purpose. Trust God because He loves you so much. Never forget that any and all things are possible with Him. 
We believe the best people to listen/talk about is someone who has walked in your shoes. Check out Jackie Hill's video about her testimony. Listen to Abby talk about her story. View Mark's transparent journey. Be touched by J.O. Speaks' spoken word. 




Please feel free to reach out to us if you need a support system or check your local church for other resources. 

#OldSelfNewCreation
Eph. 4:22-24


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Sunday, July 14, 2013

Want to go to the 2014 Passion Conference for free?

Passion 2014 is coming soon. Featuring: Louie Giglio, Chris Tomlin, John Piper, Crowder, Christine Caine, Matt Redman,  Francis Chan, Christy Nockels, and Kristian Stanfill. We are sponsoring the registration for 2 college students or unemployed graduates to the Passion 2014.  You can choose the Atlanta conference on January 17th-18th or the Houston confernce February 14th-15th. Click here to learn more about the conference.

If you are interested, please submit a 500-word letter by email to boydsisters12@gmail.com explaining why you want to go to Passion 2014 and why you need assistance. DEADLINE: August 31st, 2013.





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What Do You Worship?


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What do you worship? Some may say Jesus Christ. Others may say I don't worship anything. Many may look at me in confusion and say "Worship?". To answer the question, I use to think God, but realized that I worshiped my relationship with my boyfriend. Yes, I use to worship my relationship. How? Worship is defined as anyone or anything that has supremacy in our lives. My relationship with my boyfriend had just that - supremacy over everything. It was all I talked about, what I spent most of my time with, and how I identified myself.  How do I know that? Because if my relationship would stumble or fall my entire world came crashing down with it. Hence, my relationship was my world. You see we are all created as worshipers. My question for you is what is your world? What makes your world turn upside down when it fails? Who or what do you worship? Worship is anything or anyone that we passionately give ourselves away through our time, money, and energy. Worship is what we constantly talk about, how we identity is formed, what we are commit to daily, where we find our purpose, where we desire love, find security, and how others describe us. It is the most important person or thing. It is preeminent, prominent, and occupies the place of God in our lives. I am not saying that certain things and people in our life don't deserve time, energy, and money. God has blessed us with family, friends, and possessions. He has commanded us to have good stewardship with those people (1 Timothy 5:8) and things (1 Corn. 4:2, ), NOT worship them. Everything has a purpose (Ecc. 3:1), but it should NOT BE our sole or source of purpose. We have to remember that we cannot worship the created and Creator. It's impossible. Jesus Christ tells us that we can't serve two masters. We will hate one and love the other or be devoted to one and despise the other. (Matthew 6:24) If we ever forget, there are over 200 reminders (scriptures) in the Bible about idolatry as well. Regardless, if it is your Relationship. Significant Other. A job. Children. Money. Friends. Neighbors. Pastor. The Book of Scripture rather the Meaning Behind It. Fame. Sex. Drugs. Political Idols. Music Alcohol. Praise/Attention. Being "good". Your Body by Watching Porn or Masturbation. Motivational Speakers. Food. Wealth. Prosperity. Status. Sports Idols. Fashion. Cars. Parents. Celebrity. Yourself. Anything can become an idol, but God. I challenge you and myself to worship God and only Him. Why? Because He is crazy faithful, ensures all, loves without condition, and is unfailing. We will no longer worry about our world to come crashing down because He will be our world and we will find our treasure in Him. It's impossible for a world to crumble if it is faithful, endures all, and unfailing. Jesus Christ tells us that where we believe our treasure is, is where our heart will be also. (Matthew 6:21) Let's get on a mission to seek God, find our identity and treasure in Him, and allow Him to create in us a clean heart. We are no longer on a mission to put our happiness above God's glory. We are on a mission to put our happiness in God's glory by giving Him our hearts. 

Here is a great poem by Jefferson Bethke called Counterfeit Gods to challenge who and what we worship.

#OldIdolsNewCreations
Eph. 4:22-24

OH!!!! One more thing, we are sponsoring the registration for 2 college students or unemployed graduates to the 2014 Passion Conference. Click here for more details.


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