DD's grandpa (Bill, aka Ziggy) had a stroke today. Please pray for him.

Lord, I just want to lift him up to you right now and I ask You to heal his body and restore him to his normal condition. I ask that the effects of the stroke will be minimal, if any at all. Lord, please be with their family as well and comfort them with Your peace and help them through this time. Thank You God for everything You do for us everyday, You truly are amazing. Amen.

Trying to be strong....

Lately, I have decided to make some changes in my life... I have found that unless I make things mandatory, I will not make the change.

BTW: for those of you that read my blog on MySpace... Part of this will be repetitive for you....

Some things that I have decided:

• I will eat healthy most of the time and exercise at least 3 days a week. (Really the only time I allow myself to not eat healthy is during lunch on workdays...Which will eventually change as well... but only for the most part. :)
• I will pray for my friends, family, and others more often.
• I will make steps to be a more emotionally healthy person.
• In January, I will make more of an effort to go to youth on Wednesday nights... That's a day that I go to the gym, and I can work through lunch if it's necessary to be able to leave on time.

Some things I would like to expand upon.... There are times where it becomes hard to stay true to the decisions we make in our lives. Yet, I think it's when we're weak and we decide to be strong and follow through with it, that we gain more strength in the matter than if it was easy all along. In some ways, I am a weak person and in other ways I am strong... I want to be strong in all areas, not just to be strong, but to better myself and be the person that I was created to be. If I half-butt everything, then I'm never going to get there. I need to press on. I can't let a sin, an annoying situation, drama, or any sort of failure win... I have to conquer it. I have to let love and strength, forgiveness and compassion win... For these are the things we're called to do, be and recognize.

Everthing happens for a reason

... part 2

Just because things may happen for a reason... it does not give the okay or reason for:

• saying hurtful things to people... for those of you that I have offended, today, I'm sorry, I have been completely selfish.
• not showing your feelings when it's appropriate and needed

It does not give excuse for any hurtful things that we go through or do to others... People are still responsible for their actions. In the end, we may all learn something from it and use it later on in our lives... but there's still no justification...

I think the most important thing to realize when we think about this subject is that sometimes it's not necessarily a single act or conversation, but many times it can be a compilation of events.

Everything happens for a reason....

....or does it?

I am going to be kind of everywhere within this post because I have a lot of opinions and takes on it... Excuse me if it doesn't flow or make very much sense, but please bear with me, try to follow, and let me know your opinion.

I really can't say yes or no at this point to if I think that everything happens for a reason.

Part of me thinks...yes. I am reminded of Romans 8:28...
Here it is in the Message translation:

That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.

Here it is in the New Living Translation:

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.

Yet... It is worded in a way where it talks about only those that love God... well, what about those that are almost there or aren't even looking for it? Does everything happen for a reason with them... I think that everything that happens to us gives us a choice. It gives us the choice to do the right or wrong thing. (If it is that type of option) If we choose the right thing, that can and does make us stronger because we chose the right path and it can help us choose it in the future. If we choose the wrong thing, that can make us stronger because we are able to see our weakness and work on it... If it is something that has given us consequences, it can give us character and a new type of strength. I am not trying to say that one type of strength is necessarily better, they are just different.

There are times in our lives where we have options... For some of us, it could be the job that we take or the person that we would maybe consider dating... All or any of the options could be good or right, but sometimes you just don't know unless you pick one and try it out. It is then that you can decide if it was the right or wrong decision. Sometimes you have to know the wrong decision in order to make the right one... Which would help make the wrong one have a reason... in this whole thing we call life.

There are also times that we would like to go for something... like a promotion or a different job... and we don't get it. It may seem like a person less qualified for the position gets it and we are left to just wonder why... But we don't know all of the extenuating circumstances. There can be bad things that could happen in our lives if we end out taking it.. and there could also be something way better that would bless our socks off that we wouldn't be able to receive if we had received and taken that opportunity. We may never know which of these, if any, could or would have happened, but there are always the possibilities.

Another thing... We definitely have choices in this world.. and I think that every choice we make helps mold us into the person that we are and that we want to and are becoming... What's crazy is that they usually effect other people as well, and that's why I am so glad that God exists and is there, because only He can have it all make sense to where we have somewhat normal lives and yet have something amazing in store for each of us.

Back to the original sub-thought of does the verse only apply to "believers". I don't think so. Yes, God has huge plans and love for those that believe in Him. However, for those that don't necessarily believe in Him right at this moment, He totally wants them to, and I think He puts situations and things in their lives to help point them to Him. Devastating and horrible things can show people how bad their life can be without Him. It can remind people of the lack of hope in their life... Yet, when you compare good things to God, they don't necessarily look that good anymore because God is so much more amazing than anything else. I definitely think that good things can lead people to God as well. All that to say, I think that God can use every aspect of someone's life to help draw them to Him... and I think He does... it just looks different in everyone's life.

I'm sure that I have other opinions as well, but that's it for right now...

....and all of this just because a friend asked me: Do you think everything happens for a reason?