Car Jamming. An Essential Part of Life.

I was recently rocking out to some songs on the radio. Not really thinking, just shaking my bass and what not. It can be such a good time letting loose, and dancing mindlessly in the car. The best is getting crazy with friends, but let’s be honest, when your mom starts dancing, and I KNOW you can all relate to this… You were a teenager once… It’s all over. Just turn the music off and awkwardly ride in the silent car. But when your favorite artist and the new song comes on the radio, there’s nothing you can do, but car jam! 

So during one of my car jams, I had a moment that I thought, “I wonder what they’re actually saying.” Hmm… So I just listened. I turned the music to a normal level, parked the car in the Goodwill parking lot, where I frequent, and my eyes, or rather ears were opened. I couldn’t believe what I was listening to, and not just listening to, but mindlessly singing. The Holy Spirit began convicting me, and showing me even more songs that I had been allowing enter my spirit and I immediately asked for forgiveness. 

Don’t get me wrong; I love music and the positive songs that are on the radio right now. It does some incredible things listening to songs telling us how brave and happy we should be. But my heart breaks at the lyrics of songs that tell us to play around, bribe a man to stay, or telling us that it’s ok to be a stripper if we go home with him at the end of the night... These songs that I’ve been “jamming” to goes against everything that I believe in, and I have to be honest, if you’re a believer in Jesus, it should go against what you believe in too.

As women of God, we are commanded in Proverbs 4:23 that ABOVE ALL ELSE we should be guarding our hearts. And one of the best ways to guard our hearts is to guard what's entering our minds. Not making a bad guy good for a weekend! That’s the polar opposite of guarding our heart. I don’t want to be young and reckless. I want to be YOUNG AND FREE full of the wisdom of the Holy Spirit (Isaiah 11:2). I don’t want my little sisters in Christ to have a long list of “ex-lovers”. I want them to know what it’s like to wait for the man God designed for them. To not have to wonder in their marriage bed who else they had crazy weekends with.

Time to get personal: I didn't always keep my space blank.. I filled it with names hoping I'd find love, but instead lost hope. I’m so thankful I decided to give my BLANK SPACE to Jesus, finally, so that He could decide whose name would be written on it. And I’m so grateful for my husband Johnny. He is the man of my dreams. The only time I’ve ever experienced, “Screaming, Crying, Perfect Storms,” was on a few occasions. We were playing a crazy game of PIT yelling across the table, laughing so hard I cried and peed my pants, and we went on a run in the rain in the perfect storm. Johnny is a man of God, who listens to the Holy Spirit. I never have to wonder if he’ll leave me breathless or with a nasty scar.

I urge you dear sisters in Christ, give your BLANK SPACE to Jesus, allow Him to write the perfect man’s name on your heart. It’s worth the wait. Wouldn’t it be amazing to not have to be heart broken again? (Psalm 147:3) Because I guarantee, even if your BLANK SPACE has been written on and erased multiple times, God is good to make us new and redeem us. 

"ABOVE ALL ELSE, guard your heart for it is the wellspring of life."

--Proverbs 4:23--

"He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds."

--Psalm 147:3--

One Foot in Front of the Other

By Alison Vidal

Have you ever seen the super old (and by old I mean 1970, because to me 20 years before I was born is super old) animated version of “Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town?” You know the one where every character has these weird rosy cheeks and huge, eternally smiling eyes? Well that was always one of my favorites growing up and today I was reminded of one of the songs in that movie. The song is called “Put One Foot In Front Of The Other” and it goes like this:

Put one foot in front of the other

And soon you'll be walking 'cross the floor

You put one foot in front of the other

And soon you'll be walking out the door

You never will get where you're going

If ya never get up on your feet.

Come on, there's a good tail wind blowin'

A fast walking man is hard to beat

If you want to change your direction,

If your time of life is at hand,

Well, don't be the rule, be the exception

A good way to start is to stand

So right about now you might be thinking, “Why is this lady talking about a song from a Santa Claus movie from 1970? It’s not even Christmas anymore.” This week I found out that my grandpa has a tumor in his back and despite having one surgery already to remove it, he will need another to get the rest of it. Last week I had an already fractured relationship with my mom blow up even more, which means a lot of other family relationships are affected too. The past few days I keep asking myself if it’s enough yet. I find myself asking God how I’m supposed to keep going if I keep getting kicked back down every time I manage to get up. After I heard about my grandpa's tumor the first thing that popped into my head for some reason was that song. I know it was God’s way of telling me to brush myself off, that I wasn’t going to feel any peace if I just sat around counting everything that was going wrong at the moment.

It’s easy to get caught up in the situations we find ourselves in and let our circumstances over take us, but we CAN’T do that. To trust in God means to trust in Him at all times, the good, the bad, the painful, and even the confusing.

Psalm 62:8 says “Trust in, lean on, rely on, and have confidence in Him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts before Him. God is a refuge for us (a fortress and a high tower). [pause, and calmly think of that]!”

We have to not only TRUST in Him, we need to have confidence in Him always, and I love the few words at the end of the verse, “Pause, and calmly think of that.” The Bible is telling us to just stop for a second and think about the fact that God is a never-ending refuge for us. Something my pastor says a lot is “life isn’t always easy, but God is always good.” I’ve been repeating that to myself a lot the past few days. I don’t know what situation you find yourself in today, and I don’t know what kind of things life is throwing at you, but I do know this: God is here to be your refuge, your fortress, your high tower. You might not think that you’re able to put your feet in front of you and keep moving, but lean on God and trust that He’ll keep you moving. Just put one foot in front of the other. 

Psalm 9:9 

                        “The Lord is a shelter for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble.” 

Stop Asking Me to be a Hypocrite

By: Vanessa Shepherd

Have you ever seen a pin and just said, 

“Yes, this pin gets me”. 

I found one of those lately. 

It described exactly what I was feeling…

Yes. Just yes. To so many things in life, yes. This pin doesn’t just sum up this “winter” season we are having here in the Central Valley (let’s just say we have experienced all four seasons… in one month) but so many other areas of life. Like finances- yes savings, some savings, yes savings, what savings- it’s like the worst Dr. Seuss book ever written. Or even more so, friends- yes friends, best friends, might be friends, frenemeies. Do you see where I am going with this? It is like a giant game of tug of war, one step forward and three steps back. All the while leaving me uncertain of where I stand.

Life is funny that way. We start to doubt “us” when others change their opinions of us. And boy do they change them often. And not just regarding friendships, but something of the utmost importance- our faith. It’s frustrating and often confusing if you aren’t aware of the game but it is just that, a game, orchestrated by the author of confusion himself. 

Don’t get caught up in it all ,sweet girls.  It isn’t you. It’s them. They want nothing more than for you to keep God in a box and pull Him out only when absolutely necessary. But that is not how we are supposed to live. God isn’t only for the “appropriate” times, He is for “all” times. The good, the bad, and the slept so hard your face is covered in drool and your arms are numb ugly. And if I had one thing to say to them, one request for the benefit of us all, it would be this…

Dear Society, please stop asking me to be a hypocrite.

Please stop throwing out words like “hater” or “hypocrite” or “holier than thou”. That is not who I am, that is not who we are. I am truly sorry that you have experienced such things, there are extremists in all walks of life not just those who profess Christianity, and I would ask that you not only stop referring to us as such but, if you can, stop asking us to be one.

You tell us that prayers make you uncomfortable, but then ask us to pray when tragedies arise. 

You tell us it is great to have our own opinions, but then tell us the ones we have are wrong.

You tell us we can disagree with a lifestyle, but then tell us we are ridiculous for not being entertained by it on TV.

You tell us all about your poor choices (dare we call them sins), but then ask us to be happy for you.

And that one… that one hurts the most. I have spent so many of my conversations with non-believers, unbelievers, want-to-believers, who rave about their life and their poor choices and say they just want me to “be happy for them”! 

Society! Do you even know what you are asking? You can’t have it both ways!!! You can’t tolerate that I have religious beliefs and then ask me to deny them to suffice your need to feel some sort of approval from me. (That’s not how this works, that’s not how any of this works!)

A part of me shutters inside when I, out of respect for you, allow you to go on and on with your recollection of your “crazy” weekends or inappropriate relationships. Those things that you are speaking so casually of, those things that you are bragging about, those very things separate you from a loving God and there is no way I can possibly say with all sincerity. “I am happy for you”. Because I am not. I can’t be. It is too hard.

I love you, but I can never or will ever be “happy” that someone chooses to live a life apart from Him. The One who gave His only Son to die a brutal death for you. Because He loved you so much. Because He still loves you so much.

Not because I am a “hater”, or a “hypocrite”, or “holier than thou”... but because these beliefs that I cling to are absolute and unchanging despite my wants or desires. 

If you are to know anything about me my dear friend Society, then know this, I still love you. I don’t understand you or agree with you, but I love you. You are filled with the most fascinating of people and while my heart seems to be bombarded daily by our imperfect world I still have one thing that keeps me going- the one thing you so desperately wish to silence- my faith. I have faith that despite your years of spitting in the face of God, that one day you will turn to Him. 

So I will keep going despite your confusing antics. I will keep loving despite your continual attacks. 

Because He loves you.

Because I love you.

And I will never stop. You may not understand me, or agree with me, but please stop asking me to change. Stop asking me to be a hypocrite.

Hebrews 11:1

Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; 

it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.

Matthew 5:14-16

 You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Luke 16:13

No servant is able to serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, 

or he will stand by and be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God

and mammon (riches, or anything in which you trust and on which you rely).