Heroes -Mia

             Hi friends!

             My name is Mia, and I’ve been invited to write posts for this beyond awesome blog (can you tell I’m excited?)! Just one problem- I’m kind of new to this sort of thing. I actually happen to be a fiction writer by nature, which also implies I’m a bit of a nerd as well. I’ll be honest with you- I have a real fixation on superheroes in particular.

There’s just something about a good guy swooping in and saving the day- all without ever revealing his true identity. Although you might never know who the person is, you know he (or she) is a good person by their actions. Hence, the age-old cliché of “actions speak louder than words.”

Both the good guys and the bad guys typically wear masks. But you can always tell them apart. Have you ever thought about how strange that is? The good guys and the bad guys are rarely confused with each other. Why do you think that is? Now, I may be wrong, but I think I know why. The good guys do good things just to do good things; not for the recognition. Well, that and the fact the bad guys are usually robbing banks and taking over the world…

Of course, there are a few exceptions to that, but mainly, that’s the case with all of the true heroes. You know what I mean by “true heroes”- those heroes are the ones we look up to and admire. And when it comes down to it, it doesn’t matter that they wear a mask, you know they are the good guys. It is not questioned.

But here’s my (long in coming) point: would we really be okay with hiding our identity in everyday life? Now, don’t get me wrong- be yourself. Always. Let me tell you from personal experience- keeping a façade up 24/7 can get really exhausting. It’s simply not healthy. But what I mean by “hiding our identity” is not doing things for show. I’ll be the first to admit it- getting credit is nice. I like the recognition and the applause and the pats on the back. Those are lovely rewards.

But in Matthew 6: 1-4, Jesus warns us against doing things for show. Often, if we’re honest with ourselves, the things we do in show are shallow. They’re done as a ploy to help our image or our reputation, and not as sincere acts of kindness or generosity. And although they definitely do make us look good, God does not reward things that are done in selfishness or insincerity.

But He does reward things that we simply do out of the “goodness of our hearts.” The things we do simply to help someone out. The good we do just because it is good. And God has better rewards, sisters. He sees the things we do in secret, and often, those are the things we’ve done just because.

Ladies, I truly believe there is a little bit of hero in all of us. And even if we don’t get to run around wearing capes (but if you ever get the chance, it’s actually very fun), we can let that hero show. You don’t have to perform a spectacular act of courage or anything to do that either. The little things matter, my friends. They matter most of all.

             In Christian love,

       Mia

Hello Again -Kat

Hello beautiful ladies!

I apologize for the long awaited post. Life has gotten to be very busy here, and I admit I felt pretty discouraged about keeping up with this blog. But I've come to terms with things and I'm ready to be back online with the fan base I have and that of which I look forward to creating.

As the end of the school year quickly approaches, it seems as though many of my friends are finding themselves in disagreements and arguments. Many people I look up to and admire are stooping so low as to make hurtful comments or pass defaming judgments. As I listened to one of my friends complain about the actions of another, something along the lines of, "How could they say that about another person?" escaped their lips. I couldn't help but think about that phrase a bit.

The first thing I thought about was the fact my friend came to complain to me. Whatever the other person said may have been cruel, it may have been hurtful, but what does complaining about it do? Frankly, it's just as bad as what that person originally did. At the point that we start to complain, sometimes repeatedly to several different people, it becomes gossip. We have started to do the very same thing they did originally. Okay, maybe I'm not complaining because of something they said, maybe it was something they did. But does that make it better? Absolutely not. We can't admonish our brothers and sisters if our words are tearing them down. Matthew 5:21-22 says, "You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’ (translated as "good for nothing") shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, ‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of hell fire." I don't think that Jesus literally means that these words and phrases will send us to Hell, but I believe He is referring to our attitudes towards one another. Have we not all made mistakes? I have said hurtful things. I have done things that directly contradicted the words that have come out of my mouth. Did I apologize for them? I did. Every time. But did they still talk about me because of it? Yes, every time. I didn't stop apologizing but in many people's eyes, I will always be that hurtful person because only one or two people won't accept my apology. As Christians, as God's children, we can not be those people. We have received forgiveness, we need to share it.

I also noticed that in every complaint, the focus was on the person who was wronged. Which is completely understandable, but sometimes wrongfully alienates the person who has done wrong. As a child of God, I need to be looking out for my brothers and sisters in Christ. As much as it hurts, I need to talk to my siblings and see if there's a reason they've said or done this thing. Are they feeling alone, is there something going on at home? We won't know for sure if we cut them out of our circle of friends. We have to be willing to talk with them and pray for them. We are all people, we all have bad days and need to lean on others. That doesn't change- when we mess up, it becomes more prevalent. We need to remind them why it was wrong, how they have messed up, and who really loves them.  Colossians 3:12-13 says, "Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do." That is not to say we shy away from correcting each other when we do wrong, but we need to do so in a way that builds each other up. It is so hard to forgive someone who has wronged us personally. But that's why we need humility, meekness and longsuffering; none of which come easily or naturally to us. However "as the elect of God," we need to "put on" these traits. We need to learn to use them and be conscious of doing so. 

Ladies, nothing tears the church apart more than the people it is made of. We have to work together and learn to solve conflict. We will be judged by our own standards (Matthew 7:1-2). Let us all work together to be understanding and build each other up so that we may be understood and built up. 

Thank you, friends, for reading and continually supporting me. I would love to read comments! Share with your friends.

With the love of the Lord,

Kat

"And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth.." 2 Timothy 2:24-25