The Parable of the Lost Son

For morning service of April 28, 2024, we discussed Luke 15, and the Parable of the Lost Son, a story about a son that let guilt get to him and kept him from returning home. But when he finally got home, he told his father - I'm no longer worthy to be called your son. Please at least me be your servant (because he was starving and desperate) but his father took him in and gave him love and a new robe. Family forgives and loves you, just as God does.

He wouldn't have had to lose all of the things he lost if he just would have had patience and waited on his father to give it to him as it came along. Just as we learned earlier today about patience, trust, and waiting. He had dreams about adventures and big plans and hopes... but that time he spent dreaming, he was wasting when he could have been living and actually putting things into action. (I resonated with this, as I spend a lot of time planning and coming up with things that I dream one day will happen, when I should be actually out there working toward making them happen.)

Then came the trouble for him... Trouble comes at the worst times because the Devil waits until the perfect time to make your trouble worse. So this son, not only did he lose all of his money, wasting it on cheap thrills and stupid choices, but then he ended up having to live with the pigs in order to try and make a living.

God didn't make us to live among the swine and eat like them and be like them. But this is what happens when you go against what God meant for you to do and be. It's during these terrible moments that you come to your senses and wake up and realize that you deserve better than this, and you're wasting your life, time, and talent. You don't get the blessings of God until you return to him and surrender. This son had got it worse than even the hired servants.

The "famine" he dealt with represents the wrong seeds that he had sewn. Just as we're told if we sew the right kind of seeds, we will reap the good rewards of it, if we sew the wrong kind of seeds, we're gonna be hurting. If you're supposed to be out there planting a garden for your family to eat from, and instead you're out partying and wasting your time, then your family is going to starve because you would rather be satisfying your lusts instead of being responsible. You can't abandon responsibility without paying a price.

When you're spiritually hungry and you're just feeding yourself with empty husks, you need to be spiritually full and you can do that with God. The son in the story starts to figure it out and see it, so he finally puts his pride to the side and returns to his father. We don't realize what sin is until we wake up. We can't just go out and tell people what they're doing wrong and that they're sinning, they have to figure it out for themselves.

The biggest sin is to tell yourself - I don't believe God, I don't trust God.

Sometimes you have to go through the literal shit (him living with the pigs and starving) to learn, grow, and finally become worthy. Sometimes he has to make you go through the bad things to get you where you need to be. After all, it is though our mistakes, through suffering and pain that we learn and grow to be better people.

He had an attitude adjustment, going from "give me" to "make me", when he was telling his father to give him his money early so he could go have fun with it, verus when he said to make him one of his servants. Sometimes in life, you need to try and not learn everything the hard way.

Not only does his father accept him, but was looking for him to come home. He ran to him! And despite the stink and appearance, he still kissed his neck and embraced him. It very much reminded me of how many times my Mom forgave my brother, even after she SAID she was DONE with him.

In fact, this very story reminded me of me and my brother, because he was the one who went out and had all the fun and made all of the stupid mistakes. Meanwhile, I was the good child, the one who stayed with the parent and was the ideal person. I was the jealous one who didn't think it was fair that the other sibling could do whatever he wanted and still be welcomed back and celebrated. Meanwhile, here I was the whole time, doing what I was supposed to, but being overlooked. Where was MY celebration?

But I'm glad my brother and I are on equal terms now. Just as he has been brought back to the light, I have been humbled. We both found a connection and a bond through going to church. Who would have known that it would be church that would bring us back together? I certainly never would have imagined it a couple of years ago. A year ago from when this was published, I was thinking of giving church a chance for a sense of community with good people, but now I'm glad I found my true appreciation for God and I can honestly say I believe now. Thank you God for helping me find my way back to you, and this time I truly feel like I belong here.

Needeth Not Be Ashamed

In the Pastor's bible, during our Sunday School class for April 28, 2024, in 2 Timothy 2:15 it says "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." Those words "needeth not be ashamed"... Part of your redemption is to take your past and use it to make yourself a better person.

Let's say our sins are laid out on the ground, covering a vast territory, East to West, North to South... Sins all over the place... And the blood of Jesus covers our sins. It doesn't matter how much space our sins take up, his blood covers it all. Our sins can't just hide under a rock. No stone is left unturned that his blood can't cover.

But our shame? Satan encourages us to let our shame stand up out of that pool of blood like spires. But you know what? Jesus's blood ALSO covers our shame. No matter how far those spires of shame try to reach, his blood covers it ALL.

Is the blood of Jesus strong enough to cover the strength of our sins and keep them from rearing up? That's where our faith comes in. That's why they say to just put it in Jesus's hands. No matter how worried you are, how shameful you feel... just put your faith in God and know that Jesus has got you covered.

1 John 1:8-10 states "If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts."

If we confess our sins, we will be cleansed. The devil tries to keep bringing up those sins so that you will feel shame, and therefore you will be discouraged. But you can't just say what you did wrong and expect to be forgiven. God knows what's in your heart. If you say you're sorry for cheating, but don't do what you can to make amends, and you don't truly feel remorse in your heart? You're not really repenting for your sin. Ask for forgiveness and MEAN it.

Like I said, there's no person too far out, too far down, or too far above that God can't reach. And what do you do about things you can't fix? Give it to God. Trust him. REST and WAIT. Have patience. Turn it over to God and let go of it. Your mind will tell you – if you just let it go, you must not care, but that's just Satan trying to discourage you again.

God knows what's in your heart. He knows if you mean it or not when you ask for forgiveness. He knows if you mean it or not when you say you put your faith in him. He knows if you mean it or not when you pray, or if you're just going through the motions. And this is why you can't judge someone based on how they look. Just because someone looks like a good church person on the outside, it doesn't mean they're that way on the inside. And just because someone looks like a shady person on the outside, that doesn't mean they're a bad person or unworthy of God on the inside.

1 Samuel 16:7 says "But the LORD said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The LORD doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”

That's why Jesus was so adamant about judging people, because you don't know what's going on in the inside. Just know that God knows. He knows what's really going on in your heart and your mind. But also know that he is forgiving, if you truly want to be forgiven. He is merciful and good, and he loves you.

How to Sturdy Yourself

For Sunday School, April 28, 2024 - we discussed "doctrine" and what it means to sturdy yourself. There is a difference between studying the bible, and sturdying yourself with it. When you study the bible, you read it, you learn facts, locations, times... but when you sturdy yourself with it, you take to heart the message that is being presented. You understand what the moral of the story is, and you live your life by it.

What is the bible good for?

As 2 Timothy, 3:16-17 says: All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.

Doctrine - The bible teaches us what IS right.

Reproof: The bible teaches us what is NOT right.

Correction: The bible teaches us how to GET right.

Instruction: The bible teaches us how to STAY right.

These are the things that the bible is good for. You just need to keep reading and stay on the scripture. As you read and study, it comes into your heart and you start feeling it and accept it.

During a service, do you hear something that the preacher says that resonates with you, and you find your mind drifting off about it, and then before you know it, you've missed out on some of the conversation? Different people will hear different things, and do you know what that is? That is the holy spirit telling us what we need to hear at that time.

Sturdy yourself with the bible. As 2 Timothy 2:15 says: "Work hard so you can present yourself to God and receive his approval. Be a good worker, one who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly explains the word of truth." Learn the bible, and take it to heart so that when you come face to face with God, you don't feel like a fool for not knowing his word, or being unsure of what you should have known by now.

As I've said in my blog about The Milk and the Meat, once you learn the word of God, you are expected to be responsible for it, so learn it the best way that you can. You can't just skim over the chapters and only pick which parts you're going to follow. Be confident in knowing that if asked, you can answer to God himself, if needed to.

Let's go over that verse again from my Pastor's bible. It states "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." What does it mean by "Rightly dividing the word of truth"? It means to know what fits together as you read the bible, and tie together what makes it fit. But don't pick and choose from the bible.

For example, don't be a man that says "Okay God, I'm going to close my eyes and flip through the pages, and whatever verse my finger lands on is what you're trying to tell me right now." and you end up flipping to a random page, and then you land on Matthew 27:5 which says "Then Judas threw the silver coins down in the Temple and went out and hanged himself." Then you think "Well maybe that's not the right message. Maybe I need to try it again." So you do it again, and you land on Luke 10:37 where it says "Go and do likewise". So you go out and hang yourself. That's not the way it's done! That's not how you read and learn the bible.

You don't pick and choose the verses, just as you don't only apply the parts of the bible to your life that you want to fit. You use all of it to build up your life and live the way God wants you to. This is his instruction manual. You wouldn't start building a shed halfway though the manual, skipping all of the parts for building the frame and foundation, would you? And then skip from the walls to the roof, then back to the doorway, and then the frame. Read it. Understand it. Sometimes it might take you a few read-throughs, but that's why it's called the living word, because every time you read though it again, you get something new out of it that you didn't realize before. 

Deer Chili!

FINALLY got to make some deer chili!!! (My favorite 🥰) It's been at least 5 years since I've been able to make it. (You can't imagine how happy deer chili makes me! lol) So there's this sweet guy at church named Ben. We got on the subject of deer on the roads one night when he came to pick up me and my brother for church, as he was doing the driving for transportation that night. I was talking about how much I love using deer meat for cooking, especially chili, and he said he loves hunting deer, just not eating them. So he said he had some to share some time if I wanted it. So I said sure!

Then one Wednesday evening, he showed up at church with a few frozen bags of it. That weekend (this weekend that just passed), I used my food processor to grind it up, and then I pressure cooked a few jars of it to share. I gave one to our Pastor Randy and his wife Debbie, and of course one to Ben, even though he said he doesn't really care for the meat, and that chili gives him heartburn. I told him "I bet you'll like my chili, though!" lol When he came in the door, I said "Alright, listen. You can either eat it or don't... If you don't want it, just give it to someone you work with, and you'll make their day because it's amazing." He said he will give it a try.

So thanks again to Ben! The kids love my chili as it is normally anyway, but even they agree that nothing beats using deer meat instead of beef! It really is delicious 😁

Update: So then today, I used some of the leftover chili and put it on top of some homemade hashbrowns for brunch. It was sooooo yummy! 🤤  I have just enough left to do it one more time lol And I only used 2 out of the 3 bags for meat, so I can make deer chili once more, probably in another month.

Never-Before Seen Content!

 On top of all the new blogs I plan on publishing soon (I hope), I also plan on bringing back some old stuff that you guys have never seen before! Pretty much a big chunk of my life, I have documented everything, from when I was a teenager until now, whether it be notes, photographs, blogs, vlogs, journals... I've always had a habit of documenting life and writing things down. I've added some old stuff on here before (sorry to my Mom for the times she didn't realize they were old entries that I was posting here even though I put "posted on a particular date" on the older ones) and I'm going to do that again.

Some of them are from old journals I had written down, or messages or tweets that I had sent on that particular date. Others are old blogs from places like deadjournal, or DeviantArt. Others may be from notes I sent myself or calendar events. And then there's blogs on here that are still marked as "drafts" that I want to finish and finally bring to the light. Either way, this is just a head's up to let you guys know that some old stuff will be mixed in with the new, so I hope you enjoy everything I have to offer.

Thanks for hanging out!

xoxox

Church Blogs?

 If anyone knows me, they will know how I've spent most of my life being a non-believer of the "common Christian concept of God". I never agreed with it in the past, and though I supported religion for inspiring others to be good and do good things, there was something that just didn't sit right with me... until November of 2023. That's when I was going through some changes, I was making bad choices, and I decided it was time to seek the guidance of God and follow my instincts. (One day I'll get into the story all about that as well. Never could trust my instincts until a few years back.)

I've been learning a lot and I've been very inspired by the church we like to go to. And because of that, I've decided to wake this old blog back up and start posting about what we learned in our Sunday School class, and discuss it on here; what it means to me and what I get out of it. That includes the evening services and recovery services as well. Any time I get to go to church and I have something I'm learning about, I want to discuss it here and share it with you all. I just got a Chromebook recently from the school auction, so I'm hoping to dedicate it to this purpose so that any time I feel inspired, I can crack it open and share my thoughts.

On another note, I hope everyone has been well! It's spring which means I've been gathering edible weeds and planting fruit trees. It's also income tax season which means I've recently gotten a lot of upgrades for our homestead. Hopefully I can post about them later as well. So much to talk about, and I've been so inspired! Hope ya'll will here from me again soon.

xoxoxox

Starting Out With the Bible (The Milk, The Mana, and The Meat)

For Sunday School basics today, we discussed 2nd Timothy 3:16-17. These verses say that "All scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong, and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work." So we talked about reading the bible. We talked about the different type of Bibles people have, different interpretations, different versions, different believes in the old and new testaments.

(Mine is a "New Living Translation" bible that my Aunt and Uncle got for me as an early birthday present. It connects to an app called "Filament" that if you scan the page number, it comes up with music, informational videos, animations, and documents to read that are all about that page.)

Then the Pastor said he would suggest that if someone is going to start reading the bible, he wouldn't recommend starting at Genesis, in the beginning. Maybe start with something a little easier, such as John 1, then Saint John. then the New Testament. Then once you've spent some time in the NT (don't spend too much time in the book of Revelations because that's more of a meatier chapter), then he'd suggest reading 1 Peter. Doing it this way, you slowly work your way up from the milk of the Bible to the meat of it. You start to understand it a little easier.

What did he mean by the milk and the meat? Well the "milk" of the bible is for newborn Christians. It's the stuff that helps us start to understand Christianity and how God wants us to live. It's best to start with the milk of the bible because some of the things you learn from the bible become your sword, shield, and holy armor. You wouldn't want to give a sword to a baby to play with, would you? Just as you wouldn't want to give a spiritual sword to a warrior of God to start out with, without them knowing how to wield it properly.

Then there's the "mana", which is the potatoes of the bible. It feeds you. It's good for you. It "fattens you up", you might say, with the storytelling about different people of the Bible (Noah, Moses, David, Mary, Abraham, Joseph, etc) and the important things they did.

That brings us to the "meat" of the Bible. It's the stuff that is hard to chew. It's the tough parts, like the book of Revelations. Sometimes it helps to take a second read, or to take a moment to understand what each of the verses are trying to say.

Then to understand this a little better, we read Hebrews 5:11-14, which says: "A call to Spiritual Growth: There is much more we would like to say about this, but it is difficult to explain, especially since you are spiritually dull and don't seem to listen. You have been believers so long now that you ought to be teaching others. Instead, you need someone to teach you again the basic things about God's word. You are like babies who need milk and cannot eat solid food. For someone who lives on milk is still an infant and doesn't know how to do what is right. Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong."

Basically this is saying - if you've been in church for a long while, you should already be well into the meat. You should have that meat digested, and you should be now cooking up a spiritual meal for others. You should know the Bible, and the way God wants you to live, so well now that you're helping guide others on the path. But because not everyone is the same and everybody takes their spiritual journey at their own pace, you can be in church for a good long while and still just be a baby Christian if you haven't taken the time to learn the Bible. Not just read it, but learn it and understand it.