I wish...

They made coffee scented candles.... but would that increase or decrease my appetite for coffee?
Just sayin' :D

Ignorance is Bliss?

They say ignorance is bliss, and a lot of people agree with this notion without even noticing it.
You agree with this when in a sense, you don't do anything to make this world a better place.

When you turn the other way when somebody steals something.
When you throw away your food knowing that there are people all around the world who do not have food.
You agree when you don't think of anybody but yourself.
You agree when you spend your money on the latest trend, although it was not necessary.
You agree when you take an hour in the shower when in reality, there are people around the world who have to walk miles in order get a sip of water.
How about when you see somebody suffering and you don't tell them about God? When you have the answer?

I ask you, what have you done to make this world a better place?
and if we are not fixing a problem are we part of the problem?

I don't want to be just another young person who is simply wasting their youth. We have one life, and our youth only comes around once. We are only this strong, this willing, this ready to serve, NOW.

"Teach me to do thy will; for though art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness"
Psalms 143:10
"Flags" by Brooke Fraser

"Come, tell me your trouble
I'm not your answer
But I'm a listening ear

Reality has left you reeling
All facts and no feeling
No faith and all fear

I don't know why a good man will fall
While a wicked one stands
And our lives blow about
Like flags on the land

Who's at fault is not important
Good intentions lie dormant
And we're all to blame

While apathy acts like an ally
My enemy and I are one and the same

I don't know why the innocents fall
While the monsters still stand
And our lives blow about
Like flags on the land

I don't know why our words are so proud

Yet their promise soothing
And our lives blow about
Like flags in the wind

Oh oh oh oh

You who mourn will be comforted
You who hunger will hunger no more
All the last shall be first
Of this I am sure

You who weep now will laugh again
All you lonely be lonely no more
Yes, the last will be first
Of this I'm sure

I don't know why the innocents fall
While the monsters stand
I don't know why the little ones thirst
But I know the last shall be first
I know the last shall be first
I know the last shall be first"

To hear this song, click here

Religion Vs. a Relationship With God

Often times when people ask me what religion I am, I internally cringe at the word religion because that word simply means tradition to me. Don't get me wrong, some traditions are good like the tradition of celebrating my birthday ;), but when it comes to my living God, tradition refers to actions no feeling.
Sometimes the conversation gets carried further and they go into what I can and "can't do", which is when I interject and say I don't like the word "Can't" because I choose to live how I live.
  • Religion is when you are a different person outside of church than what you are in church. It is also when you do things "just because".
  • A relationship with God is when you want to please him at all times.
Take note that if we don't watch our spiritual life it could slowly shift into a religion.
In the word of God, we see a couple of examples of what Religion could be categorized as.

Idolatry
This is one of the clearest post marks that signal religion, and it is mentioned several times in the bible.
"Turn ye not unto idols nor make to yourselves molted gods: I am the LORD your God"
Leviticus 19:4
"Thou shall have not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath , or that is in water under earth"
Exodus 20:4
And the scriptures go on and on and on...

Respecting the house of God
When the house of the Lord begins to get treated like a regular house, this spells trouble.
In John 2:12-16, Jesus went down to Jerusalem and found that the temple had been turned into a marketplace were Oxen, sheep doves and all kind of stuff was
being sold. Let's just say God was not pleased and drove everybody out of that place. Jesus then said:
"Take these things hence; make not my Father's house an house of merchants"
John 2:16
This still happens, there are some temples that look like market places when one drives by them. Aside from a marketplace-like environment, our attire should also be respectful inside AND outside church. If people can't concentrate on the preacher because they are too busy looking at uh, something else. Then something is wrong.
“I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands , without wrath and doubting. In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with braided hair or gold, or pearls, or costly array" 1Timothy 2:8-10

Following traditions that a "church" has even though they are not in the bible.
I have to admit there are some religions that I understand why they are confused. Not that they are right, but I can see why they would get confused because they might have overlooked some scriptures or misinterpret scriptures.
The bible says that in the latter times "Some shall depart for the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils"
Religions or "doctrines of devils" that are "Speaking in lies in hypocrisy"
Well what do these religions in the latter times include? Let's see:
"Forbidding to marry and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth." 1Timothy 4:1-3

Who are we to accept Christ?
There are some religions that say that you are saved when you "accept" Christ.
"Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you" John 15:16

How to know if you are in a religion, or if you have a relationship with God.
If you are in a religion you experience some, if not all of these:
"Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings and such like: of they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God"
Galatians 5:19-21

If you have a relationship with God you will experience thse:

"But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law:
Galatians 3:22-24

Iff you find your self experiencing some of the symptoms in the first category, then my friend, you are in a religion. Don't think that if you have a "mixture" of symptoms you can be in the middle.

"Either make a tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit"
Matthew 12:33

I know this was a long post, but I had noticed I have quite a few friends that read this blog and I'm pretty sure some aren't in church. This had been on my mind for some time now, so I decided to write about it.

Like I said before, even if you are in a one-God-tongue-speaking church, you can still drift away from your relationship with God and find yourself in a place were everything turns into a religion.

Okay Goodnight!

Happy Birthday Hanna!


Happy Birthday
Hanna!

Happy birthday to one of my dearest friends, Hanna! Love you so so so so so so much. I thank God for friends like you. You have been an example in the past (and continue to be), and you are a great study buddy...Unless you can't stop talking...Oh wait, never mind, that's usually me. haha

Everybody wish her Happy Birthday!
Okay here is a little story.....

Once upon a time in a far far land....no never mind, in a small small land. There was mean girl called Hanna and a lost girl called Anali.
The problem was that everybody thought that she was an Angel... when in reality...
She hit and abused poor little wandering Anali all the time. Hanna was a clever gal', she always made sure that nobody was able to see her arm when she was taking pictures, because she would pinch who ever she was "hugging".
All little Anali could do was hold it in and hide it.
And Hanna just smiled and laughed at Anali's misery.Her laugh sounded a little bit like this "MUAHAHAHAHA"


THE END

:)

(P.S. Enjoy you LAST year of being a REAL teenager! hahahaha)

The Benefits of Having a Perfect Heart

First of all, a "Perfect Heart" is not necessarily perfect. If we really sit down and think about the word "Perfect", there is no such thing. For example: If we think a decoration is perfect it probably isn't. If we look for an imperfection we will find it, like my pastor says " El que busca encuentra" (Now you translate it). What we really mean is that the decoration was made as perfect as it could have possibly have been made by our/their humanly hands.

We all should be familiar with Job 1:1 where it is stated that Job was a perfect, upright man who feared God and "eschewed" evil (avoided evil). The scripture does not just say he had a perfect heart and was a perfect man, it goes on and elaborates on other traits that Job possessed. Therefore, a perfect heart is a heart (or person) that serves and loves God to the best of their human ability.
Let's see what the bible says about Daniel, and he will be our example.

"Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's meat, nor with the wine which he drank" Daniel 1:8
From day 1 Daniel told himself he would not be "defiled with the king's meat", which in our days would mean he purposed in his heart not to sin or do anything that was ungodly.

Great right? but so what?
Well, having a perfect heart had benefits!

"Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him: and the king thought to set him over the whole realm" -Daniel 6:3

  • As we can see in the scripture above, Daniel had an excellent/perfect spirit which pleased the king.
  • Even when the other presidents and princes wanted to find a fault in him they could not!

"Then said these men, We shall not find any occasion against this Daniel, expect we find it against him concerning the law of his God" Daniel 6:5

The interesting part is that they knew that God was directly linked in his righteousness.

  • God was with Daniel at all times, to protect and defend him; he showed his love for Daniel in the den of lions.

Daniel said unto the king "My God hath sent his angel, and hath hut the lions' mouths, that they have not hurt me: foresomuch as before him indecency was found in me; and also before thee,O king, have I done no hurt" Daniel 6:22

  • Others around David knew what kind of man he really was, and were able to defend his good name.

We can even look into the life of David when Saul was after him. At one occurrence, Jonathan asked his father Saul

"Wherefore shall he be slain? what hath he done? 1Samuel 20:32

In verse 33 we see Saul get angry because he could not answer the question, Daniel was innocent. He was so angry he through a javelin at him.

I could go on and on, but I think you get the picture right? Basically "We know that all things work together for good to them that love God" Romans 8:28. If we work on achieving that perfect heart God wants, everything will work out. Hard work is not taken lightly, our actions are not in vain. God knows our individual strengths' and weaknesses, and most importantly, if we have a perfect heart nothing can get in between our God and us. Remember, sin is like a wall between you and God; "a right heart makes right decisions" (this was a title of a message Bro. Etheridge preached once)

"Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting."
Psalm 139:23-24

Seattle!

I know I am a bit late on putting these pictures up, but I have been BUSY. Church, school, activities, family from Mexico, Volunteering and blah, blah, blah.


But here are the pictures from my trip to Seattle. I went on my spring break for those that don't know, with the lovely Carisa!



The clouds looked so cool from the airplane! I felt like we were Mario Bro's and were bouncing on clouds! haha


On the air plane! The famous gum wall!
Some cool wall at Pike place market.

Tourist ;)She was like "What is this?"
I was like"Woooooohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!".. lol


Space needle
At one of the many caffes we went to. She was reading while I was studying.
Downtown
A really pretty park. Japanese garden area? I think?
Mama bear and Poppa bear lol




hehe...Potties at the end of the underground tour.

At the underground tour!
This is pretty cool. We are underground, and we could see to the street above us through those little glass things.


This is a cool picture Carisa accidentaly took while we were in some little shop at the waterfront!
Pretty pretty pretty

First Starbucks EVER!
Pike Place Market

One thing I noticed about Seattle is that dogs are EVERYWHERE. They were either laying in the middle of a store (like this one),or on display window! lol
I found Elvis


The encyclopedia of immaturity, everything makes sense now!


My first meal in a different state!





Pike place market! Really cute and nice.




In conclusion, Seattle Washington was COLD and very musical, a lot of singers and musicians. I have never drank so much coffee in my life, after all it is the coffee capital! I have to admit that it was a lot like a mini San Francisco, but it was nice to be away from home. I felt like a big girl! Since I don't have the money YET to travel the world, I want to go to as many of the 50 states as I can. I can't wait until my next trip! I am a deprived child and have only seen some parts of California and Mexico!


It's funny how right before I left for my trip my pastor told the church that he liked what I was doing, traveling and going to school. He said "Sisters, don't say amen because you will get in trouble, but I know that after you get married you all regretted a lot of things like not going to school or traveling. So I am glad you are doing this sister Anali"

He also said he thinks I should get a new car before I get married, but I said that is too expensive.... Plus I can't pop my own tire on the curve if its new..... Lol.


:)