Personification

So clever, and so funny!

Fall is here! Cooler weather! Changing leaves! Ubiquitous fake pumpkin flavored baked goods and beverages! And best of all, modest clothes are coming out of the closet! The angels themselves rejoice as long sleeve sweaters emerge and head coverings become standard. Turtlenecks are popular!...

I live ur blog :)))))))) so much

Aww! :) Thanks bro!

Hello Darlings! I'm doing the 30 Hour Famine in a couple weeks, fasting to raise awareness and accepting money to raise money for World Vision, a Christian humanitarian organization. Their programs span education, childcare, healthcare, and nutrition. If you would like to contribute to this fantastic cause, it would be much appreciated! Lots of love :)  -Katherine 

Do you think God or Jesus would get mad if someone had sex before they got married?

No, I absolutely do not think that God would get mad. Because, you see, God is very consistent, and all sin is equal to God. Sex before marriage is just as bad as murder, but also just as bad as saying hurtful words. And you don’t see God smiting me with lightning every time I lose my temper. Thank goodness for that!God loves us. He knows that we’re going to screw up. And yes, our screw-ups separate us from His perfection and His glory, but He didn’t want that, so He made a way for us to be close to Him even though we’re imperfect and corrupt. That was the cross. God’s grace is infinite! It’s like a tidal wave that crashes over you and snatches you up in the inexorable current and tumbles you head over heels in it’s wake. It submerges you completely, until you don’t even know which way is up anymore. But that’s okay, because unlike real life water, God’s living water makes you feel like you can finally breathe again, and that there’s no weight pushing down on you at all. It makes you feel like you can fly, like you’re soaring high up in the atmosphere, weaving in and out of clouds, and you haven’t a care in the world! God’s grace is vast enough to handle our mistakes. He will not get mad at us for having sex before marriage. He wouldn’t necessarily be delighted with us, but I picture Him as the father who’s all like “I’m not mad…I’m disappointed." I know, that kind of makes me want to crawl into a dark hole and never come out again. BUT! Here’s the really big, gigantic, ginormous, massive, humongous BUT! When we go to God and we’re like "I know I screwed up, and I’m sorry. Please forgive me and make me all perfect and beautiful and spotless again." He does! The bible says that He will throw our sins into the "sea of forgetfulness" - that expression comes from Micah 7:19: 

 19 

You will again have compassion on us;    you will tread our sins underfoot    and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.

The bible also says that He has removed our sin from us as far as the east is from the west in Psalm 103:12: 

12 He has removed our sins as far from us    as the east is from the west.

So basically, never be afraid of God if you feel like you’ve done something He wouldn’t like. Because the minute you approach Him in contrition, He is so ready to hug you and say “It’s okay, I forgive you and I love you.” That applies to any and every sin out there! Peace and love! -Katherine 

“To speak of the suffering God is dangerous language, and we need to beware of any tendency to glorify suffering and to forget that suffering is bad, that God is opposed to suffering and seeks to end it, and that Jesus was not abandoned but supported by God throughout the anguish of the passion and death. Yet, in spite of these qualifications, such language is demanded of us by the truth to which we bear witness. God on the cross means God in pain, God in distress, a suffering God. Only the suffering God can help.”

— Kenneth Leech, We Preach Christ Crucified

A Pragmatic and surprisingly comforting perspective about the Trump 2nd Presidency from the ACLU

***Apologies if this is how you found out the 2024 election results***

Blacked out part is my name.

I’m not going to let this make me give up. It’s disheartening, and today I will wallow, probably tomorrow too

AND

I will continue to do my part in my community to spread the activism and promote change for the world I want to live in. I want to change the world AND help with the dishes.

And I won’t let an orange pit stain be what stops me from trying to be better.

A link to donate to the ACLU if able and inclined. I know I am

action.aclu.org

The ACLU is Fighting Back Against Trump

As the Trump administration moves toward the White House, the stakes could never be higher. But the ACLU is ready to fight back! As Presi

Christianity stands or falls with its revolutionary protest against violence, arbitrariness, and pride of power and with its plea for the weak. Christians are doing too little to make these points clear rather than too much. Christendom adjusts itself far too easily to the worship of power. Christians should give more offense, shock the world far more, than they are doing now. Christians should take a stronger stand in favor of the weak rather than considering first the possible right of the strong.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Sermon on II Corinthians 12:9 (via bonniekristian)

God is calling YOU.

I decided today that I resent the phrase “full-time ministry” when referring to pastors. ”Full-time” ministry, as opposed to everybody else who’s only part-time? I believe that EVERYBODY’S ministry should be full-time. I believe that witnessing and outreach should be a way of life, not a job.  I have many friends who want to be pastors or did want to at some point (the official count is up to six at the moment.) And sometimes I think that people feel like if you’re a Christian, the only job God can call you to is to be a pastor or a missionary - like those are the only “Holy” jobs. Like you HAVE to do one or the other to truly be a good Christian. Because, for a long time, when my very best friend was absolutely 100% certain of God’s calling on her life to become a children’s pastor, I felt like I didn’t have a calling on my life. I think I know what it is now. :)

I want to put it out there that God calls all types. I believe I have friends who are called into social work. God calls doctors and nurses. God calls business men. God DEFINITELY called my mom to be a teacher. She says she knows that teaching is where she is supposed to be, with junior high kids who are messed and lost and just need love and guidance. I know people who have a heart for kids and want to love on them so they’re going into social work to help children have better lives. And I want to be a pediatrician, because I love children and I want to help people.

God gave you talents and interests and skills and passions for a reason! And whatever He calls you to do, it’ll probably line up with whatever He’s already equipped you to do well. He might call you to be a stay-at-home mom, or a lawyer or a plumber!

Where do you draw the line at what's appropriate sexually before marriage?

I’m pretty conservative, so kissing is my limit. Like, I don’t want hands going ANYWHERE, not even above the belt. :P I try to follow these rules: 1. No clothes are coming off. 2. Don’t touch me anywhere that would be covered by a bikini.

I just do this because the road to sex is a very slippery slope, and I’m worried that once you start down that slope, it’s really hard to stop. And to me, it’s too much of a risk to take, so I’d prefer to stay faaaaaar away from that slope at all, and make absolutely certain that nothing’s gonna happen. I just don’t know how strong my will power is, and I’d really prefer not to find out, haha :P

Thanks for the question! Peace and love! -Katherine

What is your opinion on abortion? Especially in cases where consummation was due to rape?

Basically, “a person’s a person, no matter how small.” - Horton Hears A Who, Dr. Seuss. 

If you’re super curious, you can read this blog post by someone I admire greatly, pastor and theologian John Piper. I think that through some miracle, as soon as the sperm unites with the egg, no matter how you break it down to the molecular level, that’s a new person. I don’t think that it’s part of the mother’s body, because each new cell being formed contains a full complement of DNA that is made up of DNA that comes from two separate people and not just from the mother. The DNA in each of those cells codes for a hair colour, an eye colour, a height and a gender. It’s the unique DNA of a person who is an entity unto themselves. And as a Christian, I don’t believe that any human has the right to decide when any other human should die. To me, that child inside of me (hypothetically) is a human. God makes each and every single one of us special and beautiful and He loves us individually. There are verses in the bible that tell us that He knows us before we’re born, that His eyes saw our unformed bodies (Psalm  139:16). Like I said before, if God said it, that’s a good enough reason for me. In the ‘traditional’ (for lack of a better word) case, the sex was consensual but unprotected, resulting in an unwanted pregnancy. Let’s use suspension of disbelief and operate in a theoretical world for a minute here.  In such a case, some might say that it’s the woman’s “choice” to have an abortion. You know what I think is a choice? Having sex. Even past that, you know what else is a choice? Using a condom. In today’s western society, there is NO EXCUSE for an unwanted pregnancy. We have the technology and we have the education. If you don’t want to get pregnant, you don’t have to. Any kid can waltz into planned parenthood and get birth control without their parents even knowing. HOW!? I ask you, do people still manage to get pregnant “accidentally”? So for me, once you’re pregnant, you’ve already made your choice, and now you have to face the consequences. Okay, now we have to face the situation where sex was not a choice, and conception was due to rape. Obviously, I have never been in this situation and hopefully never will, but you never know. That’s why I’ve already decided that abortion is never an option for me. I don’t care what you say, I honestly can’t even consider the thought of killing the baby inside of me (hypothetically). It’s not even just an intellectual, religious standpoint. Whether this adds to the validity or not, it’s also a highly emotional standpoint. I CANNOT think of killing that child. Cause here’s the thing. It’s not the child’s fault. And if we’re still operating on the assumption that that’s a real PERSON, we can’t kill him or her for someone else’s crime. Also, just so you know, many women who have been raped, gotten pregnant and had an abortion, said that the abortion was more invasive and traumatic than the rape. AND many women who have been raped, gotten pregnant and had the baby, said that having the baby was cathartic in a way, and helped them see something positive that came from such a negative experience, and thereby helped with the healing process. I’ve heard girls say that they would never have an abortion unless they were raped. And I’m like “hold up now,” cause is that like it’s murder most of the time, unless you were raped, then it’s not murder? Like, whut? See to me, abortion is either always wrong, or not. And to me, it’s always wrong. To reiterate, this is my opinion. And I’m working with abstract ideas and concepts here. That’s how I think best. I’m just trying to give you an idea of my worldview as it pertains to a philosophical issue. As I’ve said before, and will say again, no decision you have ever made, whether it be different from my decisions or not, will change my opinion of you. 

 Jesus said that the most important commandment is to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength (okay, cool, makes sense) BUUUTTT….the SECOND most important commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself. (Matthew 22:37-39; Mark 12:29-31) And there are entire chapters of the bible devoted entirely to the importance of loving people (1 Corinthians 13) So! Here are the facts: 

Fact Number 1: Jesus loves you. Like, He really, REALLY loves you. Deeply, passionately, intimately, overwhelmingly. He loves you enough to die for you. He loves you so much that He DESPERATELY wants to have a personal relationship with you - to talk to you, to hear your thoughts and to walk with you through this life. Fact Number 2: I love you. I think that every single person in the world deserves to be loved and deserves to be respected simply due to the fact that you are a person and God made you and loves you. Okay, so now we’ve established that Jesus loves you and I love you, for no other reason than the fact that you’re alive, and no matter what. That cannot be altered, edited, ignored, abated, cancelled out, destroyed or denied. 

^That’s like my mantra of life, you guys. And nothing changes it. If you are reading this, and you are someone who has had an abortion, obviously I’m not in your shoes, I don’t have your life, and I don’t know your situation. And I will NEVER EVER judge you. I’m just talking about my choices, which are a completely personal thing. Peace and love! -KatherineP.S. I’m answering all these questions on the assumption that they come from good-natured curiosity, and that you genuinely want to know what I think. I don’t want to spark debates, and I definitely don’t want to participate in them. I’m not into arguing about my faith. P.P.S If I ever offend you or hurt you by something I write, please let me know. I know that I sometimes speak (or write) without thinking. I’m trying to be honest, but gracious, and I might accidentally say something dumb sometime. If I do, let me know and I will definitely apologize and do my best to repair any damage. I’m gonna put my email address in the blog description so you can contact me privately if you want.