Hello Blog World,
It's been awhile. :)
Well, believe it or not, I'm back. My last post was in 2009, which means my absence was much too long. My prayer is that I can post on here once a week. I really hope I can get into the habit.
I am back because I have a lot on my mind. Too much. I had thought about making a new blog, but then decided otherwise, since this has been my blog for so long.
My new blog was going to be named "I Will Not Bow Down". That is my reason for coming back. I believe we need more people, more Christians, to stand up for what is right. To stand on God's Word and not back down. I'm back so that I may encourage other women to stand up for God's Word and to be the woman God needs them to be in their home, and anywhere, frankly.
This is my journey. I am young and don't have all the answers, but I want to share my thoughts and heart with other believing woman, because of the passion God has given me.
Just to start off, my first post is going to be about what's been on my mind lately. I am being bombarded by the "summer look". Everywhere I turn there are ads, magazines, and women themselves, showing off their bodies. It's spring/summer. The time of year where women like to wear the least amount of clothes as possible, not worrying about being on the borderline of naked.
As a young woman, I get several different emotions from this. One thought that comes to mind is modesty. Christians these days don't realize that God hates immodesty. It causes others to sin and it blasphemes the name of God. (This is a subject I will speak of another time).
And two, lately I have been so self-conscious. "Am I pretty enough?" "Why can't I look like that?" "Why can't my hair be that way?" And on and on it goes.
I have been listening to a few John MacArthur sermons lately on womanhood, and the biggest thing that sticks out to me is that "Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised." (Proverbs 31:30)
As a woman, married to a Godly man, I come to realize each and everyday what my husband wants out of me. He sometimes says "Kirsten, when you sin, it's not your body that I get upset at." In other words, your body is not the thing you need to work on. It's your heart. When you sin, your literal body (literal flesh and bones), does not lie or say harsh words. It doesn't do anything. Oh, it may look pretty, but if you have a dirty heart, what does it matter?
A Godly man would much rather have a heart of gold than a woman of fleshly beauty. This is what I always want to remember. I want to be that woman who pursues God with all I have. I want to be that woman who fears the Lord each and everyday. Not for me. Not just for my husband. But mainly for the glory of God. This is the only reason that I am here. To glorify God.
I pray this helps other woman remember to not get caught up in the things of this world. But to continually, everyday, pursue God.
In Christ,
Kirsten
Saturday, May 18, 2013
Thursday, December 10, 2009
It's About the Cross!!
It's that time of year again! :) Christmas is almost here. How are you celebrating Christmas this year? Presents? Stockings? Mistletoe? What's the true meaning of Christmas??
I made a video a few years ago to a song by Go Fish called "It's About the Cross." The song explains the true meaning of Christmas!! Enjoy!! :) And, have a wonderful, merry Christmas!
I made a video a few years ago to a song by Go Fish called "It's About the Cross." The song explains the true meaning of Christmas!! Enjoy!! :) And, have a wonderful, merry Christmas!
Monday, August 31, 2009
Blessed are...
Matthew 5:6 "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied."
When someone is hungering and thirsting for righteousness, they are not seeking their own. Everyone must see their need for righteousness. "But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousness are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away" (Isaiah 64:6). Our righteous deeds are like filthy rags. Standing before God, they amount to nothing.
God is a just judge and His judgments are right. He cannot acquit the wicked. "The Lord ... will not acquit the wicked" (Nahum 1:3). His perfect holiness cannot put any sin in compromise.
How is our righteous deeds as filthy rags? Well, first off, prier to salvation, everything we ever did was sin. Everything. We never did anything but sin. The reason for this is that, without a proper understanding of the Cross and Christ, we can't possibly, at any time be keeping the First Commandment, which is "You shall have no other gods before Me." In other words, Christ is to be first. If a person has not come to salvation, then even their so called "righteous deeds" are unrighteous because they are not done to the glory and honor of Christ. In most cases, they are done for their own merit.
But, yet I would like to present an earthly scenario that will help you understand the just judgments of God. For example: An angry man ran into a bank and stole $250,000. He was running from the Law for years. After 3 years, they finally found the man and brought him before the Court. The Judge has all the evidence and he is without a doubt guilty of this crime. The Judge then asks, "Do you have anything to say?"
The man replies, "Yes. Judge I know I stole that money, but I've been a good person ever since then. I've participated in helping the homeless. I've helped older ladies get across the road. I even gave some of that money to the poor and to little children without a home. Can you not just forgive me and let me go?"
You see? What is right in this situation? The man has stolen and all the evidence is their, he's guilty. What do you think the judge will say? If he's a good and just judge he will say, "You may have done those things but that still doesn't give you the freedom to be let go. You have a fine to pay. You committed a crime and now there is a penalty to your crime, regardless of what good things you have done.
As the situation above illustrates, a good judge cannot pass over a crime. There is a punishment for the crime regardless of anything else that person has done. Good deeds cannot help a guilty man standing before a court of law. And just like this situation, God cannot and will not let someone go based on a so called "good work." There is still a crime that was committed and therefore there is still a fine to be payed. He is much more just and much more holy than any mere man judge on this earth. He will not only see that thieves and murders get punished, but liars as well.
It's clear our sentence will be "guilty" on judgment day, when we stand before the Just Judge of the universe. That is, unless we see Christ's sacrifice on the Cross as a payment for our crimes (sins) and see that He paid our fine for us. If we see this and it causes us to grieve and mourn (Matt 5:4), which produces repentance unto salvation, then we can be legally dismissed on judgment day. Not because God will look over our sin and not based on any thing "good" we have done, but based on the payment of another, Christ Jesus. Based on Christ's death on the Cross and His Resurrection from the grave, we will be forgiven of our debts. Christ paid them!
We must seek after His righteousness and we will be satisfied only in His! It's only His righteousness that can save. We haven't any. Fling yourself upon the mercies of God! Turn from your sins and put your trust in Him!
In Christ,
Kirsten
hunger and thirst for righteousness. This is the
opposite of the self-righteousness of the Pharisees. It speaks of those who seek
God's righteousness rather than attempting to establish a righteousness of their
own (Ro 10:3; Php 3:9). What they seek will fill them, i.e., it will satisfy
their hunger and thirst for a right relationship with God.
When someone is hungering and thirsting for righteousness, they are not seeking their own. Everyone must see their need for righteousness. "But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousness are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away" (Isaiah 64:6). Our righteous deeds are like filthy rags. Standing before God, they amount to nothing.
God is a just judge and His judgments are right. He cannot acquit the wicked. "The Lord ... will not acquit the wicked" (Nahum 1:3). His perfect holiness cannot put any sin in compromise.
How is our righteous deeds as filthy rags? Well, first off, prier to salvation, everything we ever did was sin. Everything. We never did anything but sin. The reason for this is that, without a proper understanding of the Cross and Christ, we can't possibly, at any time be keeping the First Commandment, which is "You shall have no other gods before Me." In other words, Christ is to be first. If a person has not come to salvation, then even their so called "righteous deeds" are unrighteous because they are not done to the glory and honor of Christ. In most cases, they are done for their own merit.
But, yet I would like to present an earthly scenario that will help you understand the just judgments of God. For example: An angry man ran into a bank and stole $250,000. He was running from the Law for years. After 3 years, they finally found the man and brought him before the Court. The Judge has all the evidence and he is without a doubt guilty of this crime. The Judge then asks, "Do you have anything to say?"
The man replies, "Yes. Judge I know I stole that money, but I've been a good person ever since then. I've participated in helping the homeless. I've helped older ladies get across the road. I even gave some of that money to the poor and to little children without a home. Can you not just forgive me and let me go?"
You see? What is right in this situation? The man has stolen and all the evidence is their, he's guilty. What do you think the judge will say? If he's a good and just judge he will say, "You may have done those things but that still doesn't give you the freedom to be let go. You have a fine to pay. You committed a crime and now there is a penalty to your crime, regardless of what good things you have done.
As the situation above illustrates, a good judge cannot pass over a crime. There is a punishment for the crime regardless of anything else that person has done. Good deeds cannot help a guilty man standing before a court of law. And just like this situation, God cannot and will not let someone go based on a so called "good work." There is still a crime that was committed and therefore there is still a fine to be payed. He is much more just and much more holy than any mere man judge on this earth. He will not only see that thieves and murders get punished, but liars as well.
It's clear our sentence will be "guilty" on judgment day, when we stand before the Just Judge of the universe. That is, unless we see Christ's sacrifice on the Cross as a payment for our crimes (sins) and see that He paid our fine for us. If we see this and it causes us to grieve and mourn (Matt 5:4), which produces repentance unto salvation, then we can be legally dismissed on judgment day. Not because God will look over our sin and not based on any thing "good" we have done, but based on the payment of another, Christ Jesus. Based on Christ's death on the Cross and His Resurrection from the grave, we will be forgiven of our debts. Christ paid them!
We must seek after His righteousness and we will be satisfied only in His! It's only His righteousness that can save. We haven't any. Fling yourself upon the mercies of God! Turn from your sins and put your trust in Him!
In Christ,
Kirsten
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Blessed are...
Matthew 5:5 "Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth."
As we have previously looked at, in order to come to Christ (in order to be saved) you must be "poor in spirit" (Mt 5:3), you must mourn over your sins (Mt 5:4), and now we learn that you must be gentle or humble (Mt 5:5).
We must see our poverty of spirit, that we are wretched sinners and can in no way save ourselves. We must mourn over the fact that we are wretched sinners, deserving of God's wrath. We must humble ourselves before God and cast all of our pride, all of our sin away from us. We have to be humble and say that we are indeed poor in spirit and we need Christ's forgiveness. For a self-righteous, proud, arrogant sinner, this is hard. A spiritually blind man wants in no way to humble himself and admit he is blind and needs a Savior. "... Jesus said to them, 'With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.'"
"Thus says the LORD, 'Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool. Where then is a house you could build for Me? And where is a place that I may rest? For My hand made all these things, Thus all these things came into being,' declares the LORD 'But to this one I will look, To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word" (Isaiah 66:1-2). The Lord dwells with him who is humble.
So, humble yourself before God. Cry out to Him today! Repent of your sins and put your trust in Christ if you haven't already. "Surely He scorns the scornful, But gives grace to the humble" (Proverbs 3:34). "... God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble" (1 Peter 5:5).
In Christ,
Kirsten
"But the meek shall inherit the earth, And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace" (Psalm 37:11). Gentleness is another word for meekness or humility. In the New American Standard, Psalm 37:11 states, "But the humble will inherit the land..."the gentle. Gentleness of meekness is the opposite of being
out of control. It is not weakness, but supreme self-control empowered by the
Spirit (cf. Gal 5:23). The statement that the meek "shall inherit the earth" is
quoted from Ps 37:11.
As we have previously looked at, in order to come to Christ (in order to be saved) you must be "poor in spirit" (Mt 5:3), you must mourn over your sins (Mt 5:4), and now we learn that you must be gentle or humble (Mt 5:5).
We must see our poverty of spirit, that we are wretched sinners and can in no way save ourselves. We must mourn over the fact that we are wretched sinners, deserving of God's wrath. We must humble ourselves before God and cast all of our pride, all of our sin away from us. We have to be humble and say that we are indeed poor in spirit and we need Christ's forgiveness. For a self-righteous, proud, arrogant sinner, this is hard. A spiritually blind man wants in no way to humble himself and admit he is blind and needs a Savior. "... Jesus said to them, 'With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.'"
"Thus says the LORD, 'Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool. Where then is a house you could build for Me? And where is a place that I may rest? For My hand made all these things, Thus all these things came into being,' declares the LORD 'But to this one I will look, To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word" (Isaiah 66:1-2). The Lord dwells with him who is humble.
So, humble yourself before God. Cry out to Him today! Repent of your sins and put your trust in Christ if you haven't already. "Surely He scorns the scornful, But gives grace to the humble" (Proverbs 3:34). "... God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble" (1 Peter 5:5).
In Christ,
Kirsten
Friday, August 28, 2009
Blessed are...
Matthew 5:4 "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted."
(MacArthur, John. The MacArthur Study Bible.)
Just as in verse three, verse four speaks of salvation. "Blessed are those who mourn." This doesn't speak of just crying or mourning over anything. This "mourning" is a broken heart before God, a mourning over sin.
We seen yesterday that we must be poor in spirit for "theirs is the kingdom of heaven." This poverty of spirit, or rather, the realization of your poverty of spirit, leads to a mourning over sin. When we realize that we have sinned before a holy God, that we will be punished justly in hell for these sins that we have committed, but that Christ took the punishment for us, we mourn over our wretched souls. It's God's grace that leads us to this mourning. "the kindness of God leads you to repentance" (Romans 2:4).
"For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death" (2 Corinthians 7:10). We turn to the mercies of God through this brokenness. Only through His love and mercy can we be forgiven of our sins. It's by His grace we are saved. "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9).
So, this is how those who mourn "shall be comforted." When a person mourns over their sins and has a true godly sorrow, this leads to repentance. God saves them. Then, once God saves them, He gives them a new heart, with new desires. "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh" (Ezekiel 36:26).
Those saved by God's grace are comforted in the fact that Christ took their punishment on the cross and bore God's wrath. We have comfort that God's wrath is satisfied and we are forgiven! We have comfort that we will one day be with our Savior because He rose from the dead, therefore initiating life. Death has no sting! "But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, 'DEATH IS SWALLOWED UP in victory. O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR VICTORY? O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING?'" (1 Corinthians 15:54-55).
Have you mourned over your sins? Have you had a true godly sorrow leading to repentance? Do you know the poverty of your spirit? Think about your sins. Think about the many times you have sinned before God. He sees everything, even your thought life. Then look at the Cross, where Christ took your punishment and bore your wrath. Let this break your heart. Repent (turn away from) your sins, put your trust in Christ today! You may not have another day.
In Christ,
Kirsten
"those who mourn. This speaks of mourning over sin,
the godly sorrow that produces repentance leading to salvation without regret
(2Co 7:10). The "comfort" is the comfort of forgiveness and salvation (cf. Is
40:1,2).
(MacArthur, John. The MacArthur Study Bible.)
Just as in verse three, verse four speaks of salvation. "Blessed are those who mourn." This doesn't speak of just crying or mourning over anything. This "mourning" is a broken heart before God, a mourning over sin.
We seen yesterday that we must be poor in spirit for "theirs is the kingdom of heaven." This poverty of spirit, or rather, the realization of your poverty of spirit, leads to a mourning over sin. When we realize that we have sinned before a holy God, that we will be punished justly in hell for these sins that we have committed, but that Christ took the punishment for us, we mourn over our wretched souls. It's God's grace that leads us to this mourning. "the kindness of God leads you to repentance" (Romans 2:4).
"For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death" (2 Corinthians 7:10). We turn to the mercies of God through this brokenness. Only through His love and mercy can we be forgiven of our sins. It's by His grace we are saved. "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9).
So, this is how those who mourn "shall be comforted." When a person mourns over their sins and has a true godly sorrow, this leads to repentance. God saves them. Then, once God saves them, He gives them a new heart, with new desires. "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh" (Ezekiel 36:26).
Those saved by God's grace are comforted in the fact that Christ took their punishment on the cross and bore God's wrath. We have comfort that God's wrath is satisfied and we are forgiven! We have comfort that we will one day be with our Savior because He rose from the dead, therefore initiating life. Death has no sting! "But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, 'DEATH IS SWALLOWED UP in victory. O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR VICTORY? O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING?'" (1 Corinthians 15:54-55).
Have you mourned over your sins? Have you had a true godly sorrow leading to repentance? Do you know the poverty of your spirit? Think about your sins. Think about the many times you have sinned before God. He sees everything, even your thought life. Then look at the Cross, where Christ took your punishment and bore your wrath. Let this break your heart. Repent (turn away from) your sins, put your trust in Christ today! You may not have another day.
In Christ,
Kirsten
