Sticker Satisfaction

Something got me to thinking today. I've been in Lincoln the past few days for the NMEA all state convention. A couple friends of mine and I stayed at my grandma's house. She lives in Lincoln and free lodging. It rocked. We slept in today and my aunt and uncle and baby cousins came for lunch. It was nice to see them.

Before we left, I was packing my stuff and my 3 year old cousin came in. He looked at Grandma's desk and found stickers. His face lit up as he looked at me and asked if he could have some. I told him to go ask Grandma. He sprinted out of the room searching for her. What's so intriguing about stickers, I thought. I remember I used to freak out when I was littler about them. I wanted one, but now, it doesn't appeal to me as much. Why?

It reminded of a lot of christians today. When we are younger, around the beginning adolescent stages someone introduces us to Jesus and the amazing thing He did for us. Being overjoyed and probably not completely understanding the idea we freak out and want to follow Him, yet as we get older, God fades out. We aren't attracted to it as much anymore. He's just kind of there. We don't want Him as much as we used to want Him.

However, adults still do ocassionally get stickers. After voting you get a sticker and walk around with it proudly. This can be compared to Christmas or Easter for christians. It's a religious holiday so we all need to be religious. Sometimes you get stickers for giving blood. When something absolutely horrible happens to you, like a death in the family or getting fired from your job, you turn to God for a little while. Only until He gets you back on your feet so you can take back over.

I've seen it happen to which sucks more than you'd believe. Zac and I have had a friend of ours, a good friend of ours, turn away from God. Zac feels more convicted about it than I do but I still feel bad about it. Zac says he thinks it was partially his and our fault that they stopped trusting in Jesus the way they did, but we'll never really know.

In middle school this person was on fire for God, or so it seemed. We went to all the youth group stuff together, all of the church stuff together and were viewed as growing young adults of Christ, until high school happened. Things changed so fast. I will admit, when I first began high school I was not as close to God as I should have been. I never really was satisfied with my relationship with Him until the end of my junior year even, but I came back. Zac pretty much stayed the same with his relationship with God from what I could see, but our friend did not.

They started hanging out with the wrong crowd and by doing that got to going to parties and it progressed on and on. I watched as I knew them so well during middle school to not even knowing them at all when we were seniors, and it went so fast.

At the time, the christian thing seemed really cool. They wanted a sticker. As time drew on they got tired of it and it got dirty and was covered up. They didn't want it. They were done with it. All that can help them now is prayer, and lots of it.

I have to put on a new sticker every so often. I screw up and ask for forgiveness from God. He takes off the old sticker and gives me a brand new one. He forgets about what I have done. The old sticker is gone with a new clean one on me. He lets me start over.

Pray for our friend, and that they would get a new sticker.

Arraying Aphorisms

Politics. Racism. Abortion. Gay Marriage.

All of the above ideas have been brought up to me in the past week. Mainly because of the election, but in a non hostile environment I'm going to express my views, which I believe are right. They are based on the Bible.

Politics/Racism:
Barack Obama is the new president of the United States. I did not vote for him. I did not vote for anyone. I was not in support of Obama because he was pro choice. I've actually had someone tell me I was racist for not voting for him. A friend of mine sent a bumper sticker on facebook today that said "Voting for him BECAUSE he's black is racist, too." I'm very picky on who I would like as a leader, and Obama wasn't exactly what I would have liked. I was a bit disappointed with the results, but for whatever reason it happened. All I can do now is pray for him.

Abortion:
It is wrong, no matter how you look at it. It doesn't matter if a teenage girl has unwanted pregnancy or a married wife is raped. It's a baby. You keep it. It's a life. It's the first and only time you will probably be able to get away with murder.

Gay Marriage:
This is a touchy subject. I've recently gotten into an argument about it. I've been told "they can't help it" and "it's not their decision." However, I find that very hard to believe when God says that it is wrong. Why would a loving God make someone sinful!? He doesn't do that. Why would he distance Himself from them!? It doesn't make sense. I really don't know if they can't help it or not and it really shouldn't even matter. My God says it is wrong, therefore it is. Plain and simple. I do not hate them. God doesn't hate them.

There it is. Take it as you will.