The Point of the Blog.... ish....

Hey Guys...

Its been a long time, and now that there is a bit less confusion (Hopefully), everything should be working out grandly.

I do, however, have some things on my heart and mind.

If you've been reading my blogs, you'll see a little bit of a theme. God is incorporated in quite a few of these blogs. There's a reason for that. AND ITS NOT TO GET YOU ALL TO FALL IN LOVE!!!

THE POINT is to show you that not everyone in the Christian community is the same. Christian beliefs have been strongly misrepresented, through churches that protest at funerals (What the heck?!), and by the judgmental and hypocritical.

But the point of my blog is to show you that there are people who are real in the christian community. I have flaws, and I have done things in my life that I'm ashamed of, and I'd like to apologize if I have ever been immature, hypocritical, or judgmental towards any of you, because I aspire to not be that way. I fight my hardest not to be like the Christians who give the rest a horrible name. If I ever found out that I lead someone astray or away from God due to my attitude and actions, I would feel indescribably horrid.

But you have to know that we all have things that are hard to live with, and, in my experience, everyone hides things. No one does not have at least one secret that they would be ruined if it got out, at least for them. However, the only way to get past that, and to let that go, is to put it into the hands of someone who can help. Of someone who can lead you in the right direction. Find a close friend. If you don't have one, find one. Good, close friends are the most amazing thing you could ever have, and to share a part of yourself that you've been hiding is the extremely relieving. Trust me, I know.

Well, that is ultimately the point that I have tried to make, and if I have failed, I apologize again, and I hope I am inspiring to you and, eventually, to many others. If you read my blog, you should tell other people to read it too. The more the merrier, right? I think so too.

Thanks for listening and, if you made it to the end of this blog, congrats. Sorry if its repetitive. I dont generally proofread these things.... Lol.

Love you all, and keep reading!!

Aaron Jay

Hello World....

Its been a while, huh? I've been a little tied up recently and I've had not a lot to say. However, I've been thinking lately and Im ready to say some stuff.

To begin, I'd like to say that I think it is nearly impossible to stay with someone constantly without growing tired of them. When they say "absence makes the heart grow fonder" or however that goes, I cannot disagree. Thats just a side note, however, and completely unrelated to what I have to say.

I'm not even sure what I'm going to write. I had an idea, but it escaped me. Inconveniently as always.

I'm going to be honest with you all in my absent-mindedness. I have been slacking, I guess you could say. I've been lagging not only in blogging (which I am very sorry for), but in life in general. With God especially. I think I found my topic.

I've heard people say that going to school for something like youth ministry or ministry in general is nothing compared to the experience. Trust me, they are not lying. When I was at school in glorious Illinois, I took a youth ministry class, and it taught me a lot about teenagers and what they are thinking and what they go through as they get into adulthood. But, i must admit that taking that course and then coming back home to my youth group was completely different. Its good to know what people are thinking and going through, but the fact that my number one strength is empathy and I work it to death, knowing that stuff doesn't help because I know. I don't know how, but I do. Give me any situation, whether I've been there or not, and I can feel it. I can feel the pain. The hurt. The suffering.

But that is irrelevant. Living the youth ministry and talking about it are completely different. However. I have to go. I need to convince people to have Applebee's with me. I love you all, and keep in touch!! Questions or anything at all, email me/ (aaronjay88@gmail.com) Again, all my love goes to my readers. and I would LOVE to hear from you.

Thanks again,

Aaron Jay

Sex

In a core class that I am taking, we are reading a book called "Real Sex: The naked truth about chastity". In this book, in one chapter specifically, it talks about how the term "casual sex" is never really casual. She mentions how, many times when people sin, they are not "in" themselves. Meaning they have no idea at the time that they are sinning, or that they are constantly in sin. 

This made me think about a previous comment she had made relating to her friend, and the fact that her friend was, at one time, in a relationship with a married man, and she knew it. In the book, Lauren Winner, the author, looks at this from her friends point of view. However, I am thinking about it from the perspective of the man committing adultery, and how disconnected he would have to force himself to be to have sex with someone aside from his wife. 

Sex brings a connection between two people that they may not realize at the time. How a man could have sex with two women, and, being married to one, feel no shame. He must disconnect himself to a point where he is either nearly convinced that he is not married, or that he is not having sex with this other person. And if not one of these, I don't understand how he could live with that guilt on his heart. 

I really don't understand how people can do this, and I pray that I never have to fall victim to cheating. I think marriage is something deep and that interrupting that with an affair has got to be painful on the wrongdoer.

Life isn't Fair

I used to hate it when my parent would tell me that life isn't fair. I still get this feeling in the pit of my stomach every time I hear these words. People, when they say things like that, never really stop to think about what they are saying. What they need to realize is that life ISN'T fair. There ARE starving children out there that could use many things we take complete advantage of. It brings tears to my eyes to think about how much we as Americans have and how much we complain if we can't have what we think we need. All we need is food, water, and clothing. And even clothing is unnecessary. God created Adam and Eve without clothes. They were perfectly content with it until they were consumed by sin. 

There are children in  countries suck as Uganda, Thailand, and Rwanda, that are starving, and that have absolutely nothing to call their own. 

There are people in California dying of obesity.

There are kids in southern africa and Asia that have no shoes at all.

I personally own enough to use for my entire family, and probably more. 

Is life fair? Is it fair that we live in our luxurious homes with swimming pools, and hot tubs, and eight TV sets, while a good chunk of foreign population barely has something to sleep under during a storm?

This is the reason I cannot stand our country. Sure, we are free. But what do we have, really? We have an overabundance of materialistic things that completely unnecessary. We have people dying from EATING TOO MUCH. What we need is poverty. I don't mean poverty like 'oh no, i need to buy more shoes because i don't have a pair that goes with this.' I mean REAL poverty. 

The way I see it, with poverty comes understanding. And with poverty come respect for what we have. 

We will never know what we have until we see how those people who have nothing live. 

So no. Life ISN'T fair. But thats because America is doing NOTHING to help it get there.

If I continue to wait, will it change anything?

Will my life be different if I sit around waiting for something to happen?

Will I ever find the girl of my dreams if I dont put myself out there?

Will I ever grow in my faith without leaving my comfort zone?

Will my heart grow stronger if I let it weaken and fall apart?

Will my speak improve if I sit around not saying anything?

The answer is no. 

Nothing will change if you don't put yourself out.

You will only get back if your willing to give.

You can only give if your willing to not be selfish. 

So do the world a favor...

Set your superficial life aside.

Give us a break and take life in stride.

Give your heart away.

Steal another's away.

Without giving, there is no receiving.

Thats how life is.

You can get unless you give. 

You can't truly find unless you get lost.

So get lost.

Be found.

Give.

Take.

Live.

Die.

Explore.....

Lose yourself.

My lifesong....

Have you ever listened to music that just gripped you in a way that you cannot express? 

Have you ever been to a concert, or had the music up so loud that you couldn't tell the bass from your heartbeat, and you worried that when the bass stopped, you just might fall to the floor, lifeless?

Its those moments that I know that there has to be more out there than just humanity. And I'm not talking about aliens. I'm talking about God. People are not deep enough to have thought of music for themselves. Music was created by God to give people a feeling of His presence. Secular or Christian, music reaches for something that we as humans could never get to ourselves. there is a connection to something unexplained when you envelop yourself in a beautiful melody, or you play something straight from your heart. There is something there that cannot be explained. Not, at least, by our human standards. 

It triggers something inside of us that longs for more. something that makes us want to search for some unknown thing and never stop. It makes us want to be content in searching, and finding that perfect piece, or that one song that just speaks your life and your meaning. A song that IS you is musical form. And many people have accomplished that. I, however, am still searching. And I anticipate a long search. God knows me and he knows my heart. And when I find my lifesong, only then will I be satisfied.

Mother Teresa

What can you consider to be the deepest words spoken? What words released from the stained mouths of humanity can mean anything? If we are so unclean, and so impure, then how can we love in the most pure form? Or can we? I think we can. But not alone.

In order to love the way God loves, and to see the way God sees, we need Him. We need to have his example as an everyday guidance in our lives and our hearts. We need to be able to look into the eyes of God and say “I have a problem. Please, Help me fix this.” We need to have a way to fight through the spiritual battle that is life, whether people realize it or not.

LIFE is a battle. It’s a fight for our souls. A fight for Heaven, or for hell. It’s a battle in which many people are lost, and many people are found in a way that could never be imagined by those untouched.  This earth is but a battle ground. And this battle ground will one day become holy, and become the land that Jesus walks on, and the land that God leads his Children to.

And here we are, the impure, much-less-than-perfect humanity, thinking we know everything, and making the world a crappier place all the while trying to improve it. God made us to keep this place clean, and to take care of it the way he would have. We are here screwing everything up, and who cares? Who do you know that has stepped up to fight for it to be the way it was meant to be? Who has actually made it a better place?

There are people who have. People know of many of them. Mother Teresa, for one. This woman devoted her life to helping people to be more life Christ, and to follow Him with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength.

Would you disregard such a woman because she is a Catholic? I would never think of such a thing.  She was an amazing woman, who did amazing things. And yet even she, the seemingly most honorable woman the world has ever known, has faced her share of criticism. Christianity was not meant to be easy. It was meant to be powerful. And in the case of Mother Teresa, it was.

Being a Catholic would not discredit her work, and if it does so in your eyes, you have some serious rethinking to do. This woman worked with those who needed it until the day she died, and she should be respected for everything she did. Her being a Catholic isn’t going to change anything. It’s another denomination. Another way the world sets the Believers of Christ apart. In the end, your denomination will have no bearing on whether or not you enter the Kingdom. What will matter is you. Your heart, and your life. What you did with what you had and if you used it for the good of man and of God.

That’s what matters. Not a stupid denomination. Not a stupid sect of another “mind-set religion”.  You. Your soul. Your relationship.

God knows your heart. Do you?

Tonight...

I really don't know what I am going to say. I just know that there is something that needs to be said. I know that there are people who need to stand up and say what they need. I guess I just found my topic. Somehow, I always do...

How can people keep something inside when there is so much that needs to be said? Even something simple. A smile. A word of encouragement. A confession. These things can all be so small, but so impactful. 

A smile can bring someone's day from depressing to just above it. A word of encouragement can give someone the confidence the need to get where they need to go. A confession, or telling someone something that you've struggled to say, can change your world. It can change their world.

Just the feeling of knowing you are trusted enough to keep this thing to yourself can be a huge thing for someone. Then sometimes, you have to be careful. letting something slip too soon can ruin everything you thought you had.

I owe apologies to many people. I owe my life to many people. There are people who i have put my whole world into the hand of, and somehow, there it remains.

The only thing I need to do now is trust God enough to hand my everything off to Him. I know He exists. I know He is there for me. I know there is more to Him than I will ever know. Yet something holds me back from giving Him everything. Sometimes, I'm not even sure I've given Him my heart. And thats a big deal.

God means everything, and without loving Him, I can't move forward.

And without love, I have nothing. Love is my everything, which, contrary to belief, is another way of saying God is.

I can't seem to remember to keep him in my mind. I can't seem to remember to pray, or read my bible, or keep him in my everyday living. I know He's there, but i feel like I'm not her for Him.

No matter what I do, I can't escape the feeling that i am just not doing enough.. I need Him more than anything, but I won't let myself have what i need. there is an invisible barrier between me and God, and i can't seem to find a way to tear it down.

I need you help, God. Bring me closer to you. Keep me in your presence for all of my life. And help me to remember you in everything I do. You are amazing, and I need to remember that.

~Aaron Jay

Who would've thought....

No one told me that life could change this drastically. No one took me aside and told me that the day I left for college would be the day everything changed. I was excited to have this new experience. I was excited to meet new people. But it has become more than just meeting and freedom. It has become a change of lifestyle, and a change of pace completely. My life was once going nowhere, and i hated it. Now, its going in so many different direction, i can't even keep up with it. And the scary thing is, I love it. I love how I am changing, and how life is changing with me. i used to be afraid of change. I used to be afraid of the future. Now, i embrace it.

For those of you who read this who still live at home, know this. Your life is going to change someday. The moment you get on that plane or the second you step foot onto the new college campus is the day you will never be the same. 

Do not fear, for God is with you.

"And if God is for us, who can be against us?" Romans 8:31

~Aaron Jay

Bad Religion

I used to hear these quotes, and hate them.

"Religion starts wars"

'Religion kills people"

"Its not a religion., its a relationship."

Though that last one was for different reasons, i hated these quotes with a passion. And I'm sure I defended my feelings toward them. But recently, I have been doing some thinking. 

I have come to realize that religion was not something that was a powerful  or commonly talked about thing in the old testament era. In fact, it is rarely if ever stated in it, and it is very rarely spoken of in the new testament.  Religion is a way Christian and other religious sects tell each other apart. Religion is more then just a semi-organized system of closed-minded beliefs.  Religion builds walls around people, and uses them to draw other people into these walls. I would apologize for offending anyone, but really, its something that needs to be stated. And if your offended, then maybe you are the person that I am speaking to.

I used to be like you. I used to think religion was the coolest thing in the whole world. but then I started to think for myself. I started to realize that religion is not a good thing. it DOES start wars. It DOES get people killed. 

HOWEVER, people who do not follow Christ take this to an extreme. They do not mean it the way it was meant to be interpreted.

This means that the walls, and the discrimination, and the segregation that religions bring are tearing people apart. That is correct. It is the walls. It is the fact that people fail to co-exist that people are being killed. That people are warring. 

Co-exist is an idea that should be followed. People fail to respect other peoples' opinions. Whether you agree or disagree with their lifestyle, or their beliefs, you still need to respect that they can hold these beliefs. that they have the ability to stand up for what is right in their eyes. And it is this disrespect that is pulling everything apart. 

Sure, well all live on different continents, and have different cultures, but we share the WORLD, and while everyone in the world is fighting, there is a bigger picture that they are blind to. We were put on this earth to care for it. We were not put here to fight and to destroy. 

We were hear to create and mend. 

And that is the very thing that religion is not helping with.

Jesus - The Ultimate Nonconformist

I was just reading Acts, and it got me thinking about Jesus. He was greatly disliked because his ideals didn't fit into the ideals of the Jewish culture of the time. He challenged their beliefs, and for that, people hated him. he was, in fact, the ultimate non-conformist. If he had just stuck with the crowd, following ideas and living life as everyone else did, he never would have changed anything. He put his life on the line to change the world as we knew it. So why is it that modern churches are so opposed to those who don't fit into their perfect life style? Why do so many people in modern churches have to be so judgmental, when we were called to be loving? Jesus loved. We are called to be world changers, as Jesus did. Why can people not see the beauty in people, instead of pointing out their flaws and judging them and outcasting them? Jesus called us to be accepting, loving, and nonjudgmental. The way I see it, people are not listening to the message of Christ with the right views. They are reading it to see what he disagrees with, when they should be reading it to see how to be loving and accepting.

Jesus was a nonconformist, and He made big things happen. So now, I think its our turn to get out there and do something worthwhile and against the grain. don't just fit in with the crowd. Start your own crowd. Challenge beliefs. Question things. People will tell you that questioning is a sign of weakness, or the weak in faith. They are liars. Questioning is a sign of strength. Without question, there is not growth. without challenge, there are no answers. So do you have questions? ASK. Do you disagree with something? CHALLENGE. Are you confused about something? SEARCH FOR THE ANSWER. And don't let anyone stop you.