I didn't think to post this yesterday because I was just maxing and relaxing. But I can't stress how grateful I am to the great Americans who came before us. Those who fought for freedom, both foreign and domestic, and lifted their voices over laws of injustice. People of all colors, shapes and sizes added their voices to the cry, their feet to the marches, their silence to the sit-ins and boycotts, their skin to be broken and bruised by the cruelty of men... even their lives given for the cause!
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr... leader, freedom fighter, voice of reason, way-maker with the power of the pen, spoken word, and called out to stand for God's principles of equality and justice, love, compassion, and righteousness... we salute you!
Happy Birthday and God Bless!!!
Photographer: Len Green
Tuesday, January 20, 2015
My Response to a post on Michael Baisden's Facebook
Michael Baisden shared a post today that said, "the greatest sin a man can make is to believe that which does not have evidence." And of course this started a debate on belief in God vs. atheism. So I chimed in...
"Well, then that scraps the big bang theory. .. which cannot be proven. And also the theory that all life developed from single-celled organisms... which came from the big bang right? And these single-celled organisms just somehow "knew" (without brains) that they should start forming into creatures with arms, legs, and brains... and these brains just had to have logic and a sense of greater purpose because? The reason why we aren't all just animals eating grass and crapping on ourselves is because some single-celled organisms "decided" (without brains) that humans would be special and have "almost divine" thought.... yep I can see how all that is believable and can be proven...
Yup.
Try this. Faith is what separates us from a speck of dirt on the ground... The desire for justice is proof that we have been created by someone who is just. Love is proof that we are not just scientific. Compassion proves we are capable of being inspired by a feeling that we get (but cannot see). And ignorance is proof that we have something to lose.
I know God is real because He has been actively involved in my life and the lives of others I know since day one.
I'd rather believe we were created with purpose and see time and again that God has shown up and helped in my life... than believe some big bang left all of life to chance and that all of the various kinds of life, from humans to beetles, and all their different colors and shapes and even abilities... are just flukes of a nature... a nature created by chance..." from a big bang that came from what?
- Stephanie Josiah 1/20/2015
"Well, then that scraps the big bang theory. .. which cannot be proven. And also the theory that all life developed from single-celled organisms... which came from the big bang right? And these single-celled organisms just somehow "knew" (without brains) that they should start forming into creatures with arms, legs, and brains... and these brains just had to have logic and a sense of greater purpose because? The reason why we aren't all just animals eating grass and crapping on ourselves is because some single-celled organisms "decided" (without brains) that humans would be special and have "almost divine" thought.... yep I can see how all that is believable and can be proven...
Yup.
Try this. Faith is what separates us from a speck of dirt on the ground... The desire for justice is proof that we have been created by someone who is just. Love is proof that we are not just scientific. Compassion proves we are capable of being inspired by a feeling that we get (but cannot see). And ignorance is proof that we have something to lose.
I know God is real because He has been actively involved in my life and the lives of others I know since day one.
I'd rather believe we were created with purpose and see time and again that God has shown up and helped in my life... than believe some big bang left all of life to chance and that all of the various kinds of life, from humans to beetles, and all their different colors and shapes and even abilities... are just flukes of a nature... a nature created by chance..." from a big bang that came from what?
- Stephanie Josiah 1/20/2015
Friday, January 2, 2015
NEW YEAR 2015
Somebody needs to hear the truth. Yes, the New Year is a fresh start. But you'll be going into it with the old you. (That's just the nature of the beast) All the bad habits, issues, personal hang ups, insecurities, sorrows and secrets will be trailing behind you like New Year's streamers or like the tail of a kite.
Yes, the new year is a big blank page in a book of a fresh 365 days that you may... or may not be blessed to live all of and there are many goals and dreams that lie waiting for you to take on. But... I just want to remind you that there is a book full of life-giving pages that are already filled up. The words on those pages are sometimes black, red, or in italics... and there is so much to be gained. In this book is freedom from that kite tail of the same ol junk you've carried with you into each new year. In this book is strength for all that the new year will bring. In this book is opportunity to make the most out of yourself and to be used to bless others. So let me be very clear. Your new year may be a fresh new start with resolutions to finally master that major accomplishment or task... but you don't have to make fresh marks on the canvas without a manual.
You don't have to reinvent the wheel or fill your 365 page book up with a bunch of things you wanted and dreamed of... that's a lot of work to do solo. I personally don't want to go another year without my pages full of God's Word and a closer relationship with Him.
What if what I want in 2015 is a new house, a new car, and an improved husband... but what I NEED is a better soul? A kinder heart? A more forgiving spirit? A disciplined life?
I'm not bashing new year's resolutions or the excitement of going into a new year. If anything I'm emphasizing what/who makes it more exciting. You see, the same God of 2014 will be asking for a deeper relationship with us in 2015. So let's not wipe the slate entirely clean (forgetting what He has done for us) and let's not waste our life's ink writing another year of life according to our own way and in our own strength.
I've failed in many ways this year. If I have been truly better in any way at all, it has been in living closer to God and asking Him for His Word... finally my pages have more substance.
So, for all my friends seeking a better self in the new year. Seek Christ, read His word, and pray intentional prayers to beef up your relationship with Him... Listen and pay attention for answers... Spend time in the "seeming silence" of those moments together with Him... and as you draw closer to God you won't believe, as you enter 2016, all that He brought you through and how you grew in 2015. It may just be the best 365 pages or canvases you ever painted, because if there is anything good or meaningful or of worth... we gotta get the paint from Him
I love you all!
Happy New Year from all of us Josiahs!
♡♡♡♡
#ScrapTheSelfHelp
#GodHasAManual
#BiblePrayerAndDiscipline
#HashtagsAreCyberWafflesYUM
Yes, the new year is a big blank page in a book of a fresh 365 days that you may... or may not be blessed to live all of and there are many goals and dreams that lie waiting for you to take on. But... I just want to remind you that there is a book full of life-giving pages that are already filled up. The words on those pages are sometimes black, red, or in italics... and there is so much to be gained. In this book is freedom from that kite tail of the same ol junk you've carried with you into each new year. In this book is strength for all that the new year will bring. In this book is opportunity to make the most out of yourself and to be used to bless others. So let me be very clear. Your new year may be a fresh new start with resolutions to finally master that major accomplishment or task... but you don't have to make fresh marks on the canvas without a manual.
You don't have to reinvent the wheel or fill your 365 page book up with a bunch of things you wanted and dreamed of... that's a lot of work to do solo. I personally don't want to go another year without my pages full of God's Word and a closer relationship with Him.
What if what I want in 2015 is a new house, a new car, and an improved husband... but what I NEED is a better soul? A kinder heart? A more forgiving spirit? A disciplined life?
I'm not bashing new year's resolutions or the excitement of going into a new year. If anything I'm emphasizing what/who makes it more exciting. You see, the same God of 2014 will be asking for a deeper relationship with us in 2015. So let's not wipe the slate entirely clean (forgetting what He has done for us) and let's not waste our life's ink writing another year of life according to our own way and in our own strength.
I've failed in many ways this year. If I have been truly better in any way at all, it has been in living closer to God and asking Him for His Word... finally my pages have more substance.
So, for all my friends seeking a better self in the new year. Seek Christ, read His word, and pray intentional prayers to beef up your relationship with Him... Listen and pay attention for answers... Spend time in the "seeming silence" of those moments together with Him... and as you draw closer to God you won't believe, as you enter 2016, all that He brought you through and how you grew in 2015. It may just be the best 365 pages or canvases you ever painted, because if there is anything good or meaningful or of worth... we gotta get the paint from Him
I love you all!
Happy New Year from all of us Josiahs!
♡♡♡♡
#ScrapTheSelfHelp
#GodHasAManual
#BiblePrayerAndDiscipline
#HashtagsAreCyberWafflesYUM
Christmas Eve ~ facebook post
I'm so grateful for a God who shows compassion. In the morning after of a night where I'm honest enough to share my struggles... transparent enough to admit the difficulty of this season, He shows me He was listening.
I'm happy I shared where I was at last night and I'm sorry to anyone whose joy was in jeopardy simply because I admitted to grieving every once in a while. But joy does come in the ...morning and even in the mourning.
I just have a different kind of joy some folks will never understand. And joy doesn't stop us from missing the ones we love dearly. So be encouraged, those of you who need encouragement and not correction... as if missing someone was like being the Grinch. LOL.
***
Anyway, I got my Christmas wish this morning. I dreamt about my son. He was still three years old and I was holding him in my arms. I could even smell the sweet fragrance of his hair again!
***
I thank God for hearing my cry and giving me this gift to rest in and I also thank Him for those of you who are strong enough to be my friends even when the most joyous times are bittersweet.
I'm sure on that very first Christmas, there were times when even Mary contemplated the sacrifice to come. I've read the Christmas story and there were infants that were killed, orders from King Herod, to prevent Jesus from living. I can imagine the cries of all those mothers. Christmas isn't perfect, guys, so it's okay if your Christmas isn't. The point is that Christ IS!
And though my dream this morning was as perfect as can be... God loving us no matter what, past our hurts and pain, past the ugliness of our sin and shame... that is the best gift of all.
I'm happy I shared where I was at last night and I'm sorry to anyone whose joy was in jeopardy simply because I admitted to grieving every once in a while. But joy does come in the ...morning and even in the mourning.
I just have a different kind of joy some folks will never understand. And joy doesn't stop us from missing the ones we love dearly. So be encouraged, those of you who need encouragement and not correction... as if missing someone was like being the Grinch. LOL.
***
Anyway, I got my Christmas wish this morning. I dreamt about my son. He was still three years old and I was holding him in my arms. I could even smell the sweet fragrance of his hair again!
***
I thank God for hearing my cry and giving me this gift to rest in and I also thank Him for those of you who are strong enough to be my friends even when the most joyous times are bittersweet.
I'm sure on that very first Christmas, there were times when even Mary contemplated the sacrifice to come. I've read the Christmas story and there were infants that were killed, orders from King Herod, to prevent Jesus from living. I can imagine the cries of all those mothers. Christmas isn't perfect, guys, so it's okay if your Christmas isn't. The point is that Christ IS!
And though my dream this morning was as perfect as can be... God loving us no matter what, past our hurts and pain, past the ugliness of our sin and shame... that is the best gift of all.
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