Guest Post: On Desires

Editor's Note: Today's guest post is brought to you by none other than my hubby... Loverboy! :) Normally in these intros I write about how I know the guest writer, but I think you can all guess as to how I know Brian. What I will say is that I am incredibly proud of him for openly sharing his story and being vulnerable about his struggles, lessons learned, and victories. It's been a blessing to see God work in his life these past few years and I can't wait to see how He uses our stories in the years to come! God has been gracious to us.

On Desires

Many of you on this blog know me as Loverboy. Others know me as Bri guy, Dougie, B Dougie, B man, Douglas, Brian, or even Boo. I am an engineer, and while my schooling qualifies me to talk about structural integrity or aerodynamics, I have no training that qualifies me to talk about what I am about to share. I do, however, speak from life experiences and some poor choices I have made, from choices that I simultaneously did and didn’t want to make. What many of you may not know is that for a time, beginning in college, I was looking at porn. This is becoming more and more common so you may not be that shocked by this confession, but what you might not know is that I didn’t want to to view porn… but at the same time I really wanted to view porn.

You see, that is the funny things about desires: you don’t just have one, and they are often not very clear. This was a hard time for me because I knew viewing porn was not the Lord’s best for me—I knew that viewing porn was displeasing to God, that it was addictive, that it could ultimately hurt future intimacy with the wife I hoped I would someday have, and that it would hurt me and those around me.

So I knew that it was harmful to be viewing porn and I didn’t want to displease God, but at the same time, I found pleasure in what I was looking at. I tried really hard for awhile to stop, but I was hooked. It seemed like a drug that I couldn’t get away from. It took me awhile to realize that trying harder was not the solution; that I couldn’t get free on my own. I needed divine intervention.

The thing is, divine intervention was ready and waiting for me to call on Him, but my pride was keeping me from accepting it. So finally by the grace of God, I asked for His help. It didn’t all change right away. It was a journey, and as I look back on that journey, I see what God was doing. Here are some thoughts and lessons that God has since shown me on what he was doing.

• God never commands us to change our desires. That doesn’t mean that he doesn’t care what we desire. It just means that he commands us to act a certain way whether we desire to or not. This is important when your desires pull you different ways. While I was viewing porn, I wanted to follow God’s commands but I also wanted to look at porn. I even wanted to want to not look at porn. This is often the first step to breaking free from the addition of porn: want to want the right thing. Now I’m not saying it is easy to act contrary to your desires, but God does call us to act contrary to our desires if our desires are not in line with His will and way.
• That doesn’t mean he doesn’t care what we desire, but that he realizes that we cannot just change what we desire. God wants us to desire what is good, pure and holy.
• God can change your desires. He has with mine! It is not a quick process and I cannot say that I never desire to view porn but I have come to realize by God’s work in my life that the pleasure of living by God’s design for my life is far better than anything I could want or desire. My desires have been changing to what God desires for me and away from the empty pleasures I used to want for myself.
• The first step is to let God work. You can’t be free from any sin or change your desires on your own. God is waiting for you to ask him to help. Not only has He been waiting, He actively has been seeking you out, giving you opportunities to let Him work. You have to humble yourself and choose to let Him work.
• All this doesn’t mean that we’re off the hook when it comes to desires. Remember a couple bullet points back when I said we can’t just change our desires? I sorta mislead you. I believe that we can change our desires but it is not nearly as simple as just changing them. You see, our choices affect our desires. It molds them. When we choose to do something that we enjoy, we enjoy it all the more! Likewise, when we choose to sin, our desires become tainted. Our sinful nature enjoys it and we desire it more. The reason I desired to view porn is at least partly because I had made choices to lust after woman that I had walked by and I took the good desire that God has placed in me for companionship and beauty, which was already tainted by a sinful nature, and I choose to act sinfully and lust.

I was recently convicted that when I desire something sinful, to confess it to God. Not because I had just acted sinfully, but because my past sinful acts made me to desire something sinful, because desiring what is sinful is not how God designed me to be. But I know that he won’t leave me with these sinful desires. He is changing me everyday. The desire won’t be gone on this side of heaven but I know one day, I will be free from them all.

This is a crazy idea in the culture we live in which tells people to do whatever they want! Our culture says that if a man desires to be intimate with another man, then that must be how God made them and they should do it or if a man desires to be intimate with hundreds of women, then he should do it because that is how God made him.

But the Lord says that there is a way which he has designed us to be. God didn’t design me to find pleasure in porn and lust after women, I made myself that way from a starting point of the sin nature I have from the first sin. We all have turned away from God’s good design and have been following our desires ever since. All the while, He has been patiently waiting to work in us to give us the power to choose what is right, to give us the desire to do what is right and this way, God’s way leads to life.

Guest Post // On Being a Refugee: The Sojourner's Hope

Editor's Note: Kayla and I were "random" roommates in college (good one, God!) and have been close friends ever since. We kind of thought we'd never see each other after I graduated and she had two years left, but then I decided to stick around and work with The Navigators and after two years we both moved to Minneapolis where we roomed together again, got married, and now live 15 min away from each other. Score! Kayla moved to Minneapolis to work with refugees and has been doing so for the last year and a half as an employment counselor at two different non-profits that serve refugees and immigrants. She gets exceedingly excited about maps and nutrition, enjoys red wine and chocolate, and is always looking for people to cook for. She is a true gem and is one of the most compassionate people I know. You will be blessed. —HD


On Being a Refugee: The Sojourners Hope

There are countless stories, and a few told by people who I’ve met in the last year and a half.

Akberet* hasn’t seen her husband in eight years because he was imprisoned for being a Christian. Mohamed is desperate for a way to support his family living in poverty back home. Rashiab received the opportunity to move to the US from a country plagued by Ebola and had to leave his young family behind in order to support them. Hawo came to Minneapolis after 7 years in a refugee camp with her young daughter, few belongings, and no knowledge of the English language. A family came to Minnesota in the middle of winter with minimal possessions, dressed in t-shirts and sandals.

//via

All of these individuals have had pain and hardship in their arduous journey to the US. And now, they each have challenges as they face a new culture and language in a foreign land. Being around people with these stories every day has served as a reminder that as believers in Christ, we are truly sojourners and outsiders as well. As Peter wrote in his letter to believers, “Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul.” (1 Peter 2:11). Clearly a refugee is an exile from their homeland, but why would Peter call the believer an “exile”? For the same reason Jesus says that His people are “not of this world” (John 17:16).

Like the refugee, I am a foreigner. I am not home. Like the refugee, I am a sojourner on a journey. Like the refugee my journey can leave me weak and thirsty at times. Like the refugee, I do not belong to this culture that I am living in. “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Philippians 3:20).  Just as the refugee faces a new language, new cultural rules, new weather, I face challenges as I learn more and more what it is to be a citizen of heaven in a sin-filled world

In the midst of the sobering stories aforementioned, there are also stories of great hope. In the two years she has been in the US, Akberet has learned English, earned her certification to work as a nursing assistant and took college readiness classes to study nursing. Rashiab published a novel. Hawo is attending school for the first time in her life to study English. A family was reunited with relatives whom they haven’t seen in years.

//via

For the refugee, there is great hope found in resettling to a new country with seemingly boundless opportunity. For the Christian, there is also a hope, but it is much greater and much more secure. Our hope is not found in working towards a degree or supporting a family or arriving in a new country. Our hope is in the redemption that Jesus Christ brings in forgiveness of our sin. This hope will be fully realized the day that we stand before the great Judge, faultless because of what Jesus did. For “he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…” (1 Peter 1:3).  Like the refugee, our desire is for a better country. “But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them.” (Hebrews 11:16).  When we arrive in that place, that city prepared for us, we will be gloriously welcomed and reunited with our King forever.

Let us pray that our friends and neighbors who have been forced to flee their homeland will come to share in this hope. How great it would be to tell them "… you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and members of the household of God…” (Ephesians 2:19).

//via

*Names have been changed to protect privacy.

If you want to help the refugee crisis here are some organizations I recommend:

Arrive Ministries

IIMN

Additional resources:

The Refugee Project

Map of Refugee Crisis

Related: Love>Fear // On Loving Refugees Even When It's Scary

Read more guest posts here.

Guest Post: The Fate of the Orphan

Editor's Note: Today I have a wonderful post for you written by my very new sister-in-law, Lana! Lana is passionate about orphan care and has gone on multiple trips to India to work with an orphanage there. She just got back from a trip to Mexico where she was better trained and equipped to love on these little ones—the least of these. Lana is sassy and always has a good come-back, but she is also caring and has a huge heart. I have so enjoyed getting to know Lana better over the last year or so—from sleeping in a twin bed when we first met, to thrifting and fighting over who gets the cute dress, I really do feel like she's a sister! Let's just say, I'll be one sad girl if God calls Lana to India long-term... Illinois is MUCH closer!

The Fate of the Orphan

A young girl taps at my arm, pleading with me to look her way. Without looking, I know her brightly colored dress is heavily worn and covered with dirt from life on the street. 

My eyes never shift from their forward gaze. She is persistent. Her dull brown eyes pierce through her unkept hair; locked on my face, searching for the slightest twitch or reaction. 

I know I cannot waver from my stone-like stature. 

//photo via Lana Douglas, 1987 Photography

This girl is most likely not begging for herself, but rather is forced to by her “owner” – for all intensive purposes, a pimp. Any money I give to her will only support his greed and cause more children to befall her dire fate. 

The seconds crawl by like hours. She continues to tap my elbow, motioning to her mouth to indicate that she is hungry and needs food.

Still, I do not flinch. Inside my resolve is crumbling. 

She is not just a faceless child as my exterior suggests. She is my sister, my daughter, the lost sheep, the innocent left unprotected.

With each touch of her tiny hand my heart fractures a little more – hers is the fate of the orphan.

At her final plea with no change in the indifferent statue, she moves on to the next rickshaw; hoping to pay her employer for what should have been freely provided. The moment she is out of reach the statue falls away.

I did not give her anything, but she still walked away with a part of my soul.

Guest Post: Expressions of Gratitude

Editor's Note: I am so grateful (hehe) to be bringing you a new guest post today! Since the wedding is right around the corner I thought I'd feature some lovely ladies that I think you should know. So without further ado, meet Tanya. Tanya and I met a couple years ago in beautiful Colorado during our training for Navigators Staff. She exudes peace and joy wherever she goes. Tanya lives in the Midwest with her husband, David, who is attending Medical School. Their life so far has been everything but what they have expected or even hoped. Tanya’s blog, Blissfully Sweet, is an avenue for her to express the joys of life happening now. There is joy in life. And it is meant to be shared and celebrated. 

Expressions of Gratitude

I first started blogging to document things I was grateful for. When I first started my journey to cultivating a heart of joy based on truth and thanksgiving, I had no idea what I would discover. I did not realize the darkness of my ungrateful heart and did not know the profound intimacy thanksgiving would create with my Savior.

I read books related to the topic of thanksgiving. Many of which challenged my thinking and increased my knowledge about the discipline. If you haven’t read 1000 Gifts by Ann Voskamp or Choosing Gratitude by Nancy Leigh DeMoss, I suggest ordering either book now. Although these authors’ wisdom helped me grow in this area, the reflection of thanksgiving in the Spirit of Jesus is what made me choose to have gratitude in my life (because let’s face it, if we are not thankful, we are choosing to be ungrateful and discontent).

Jesus’ expressions of gratitude in the gospels provide practical application to cultivate a heart of thanksgiving.

Jesus expressed worship and awe.After the return of the 72 in Luke 10, "he [Jesus] rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, ‘I thank you Father...’" Jesus was in awe of the Trinity’s work and his response was to thank the source.

Singing to the Lord is a wonderful aid in worshiping and expressing thankfulness. “Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; make melody to our God on the lyre!” Psalm 147:7. Some of my favorite songs to sing are “10,000 Reasons” by Matt Redman, “It Is Well With My Soul” by Horatio Spafford, and “The House of God Forever” by Jon Foreman.

Jesus expressed trust and surrender to God’s will. Many of us are familiar with the story of Lazarus in John 11; how Jesus raised him from the dead. But what I have overlooked so many times is found in verse 41, “And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, ‘Father, I thank you that you have heard me.’ “ He expressed “thanks” before he commanded Lazarus to come out. How often do we give thanks as an afterthought?

Doesn’t the test of faith and act of surrendering to God’s will happen without knowing the outcome? Gratefully trust Him with all things.

“Give thanks in all circumstances for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” 1 Thessalonians 5:18

A great way to foster all things is to keep a journal of things to be thankful for.

Jesus expressed sacrifice and service. Knowingly at the end of Jesus’ life, in the midst of betrayal and a trial that would lead to his crucifixion, He gave thanks (Luke 22:17,19) at the Last Supper. He was grateful for the sacrifice he would make and the service he was sent to complete for our justification and salvation. We too can express gratitude and speak up, offering sacrifice and service for the sake of the gospel.

“One generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts.

...

“They shall speak of the might of your awesome deeds, and I will declare your greatness. They shall pour forth the fame of your abundance goodness and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.”
Psalm 145:4, 6–7

Call for Guest Bloggers!

Hey world! Guess what? I like hearing from you! Comments, likes, shares, they're all great. But they just can't compare with guest blogging. Holy moly do I love guest bloggers! Seriously some of my most popular posts are written by peeps like YOU, which either means that I'm not that great of a blogger OR that people really like to hear from lots of different people! *Crosses fingers and hopes for option #2*

So, I'm asking you to consider sharing with the great big world what makes you tick. Is it kids? Fashion? Cooking? Power tools? Good books? Exercise? Your job? Great! I want to hear about it!

Lots of things make me tick—good design, truth, a deep conversation over coffee, blogging—and hearing what you are passionate about. I love it when people get excited about the things that they love and I love it even more when they share that with others! Passion is contagious, so why not share it here? All you have to do is go to the Facebook page and message me your idea to get the ball rolling!

I'm excited to work with you and feature your lovely passions on the blog... and I'm sure everyone else is excited to hear from you as well. So head on over to Facebook and message me already! :)

Guest Post: Ministry in Nursing

Editor's Note:
I met Becki through the Navigators in college (how else would I have any friends?!). She is a joy and cares deeply for others. Becki is a registered nurse in Eau Claire and is currently working in oncology. She loves drinking coffee, playing Scrabble, and dancing. She hopes to be able to travel the world, meet interesting people, and become a wife and mother someday. Becki can do almost any impression of Kristen Wiig and she has seen every episode of The Office multiple times. Whether for a laugh or a good cry, she's your girl! -HB

Ministry in Nursing

When Heather asked me to be a guest blogger, she told me to write about something I’m passionate about. My first thought was, “Would anyone really read a whole blog post about how much I love coffee?” 
[I’m sure there would be a few interested readers.] 

But the thing I am really passionate about is my ministry in nursing. I say ministry in nursing because I decided a while back that I never want to view nursing as just a job that pays the bills, or as a career that runs my life, but as a ministry that God has chosen, prepared, and designed me for. While many of my fellow RNs would say that they chose nursing (for the patients, for the intellectual challenge, for the job security…), I would say that God chose nursing for me. 

I am thankful that in months of applying for nursing jobs and waiting, God corrected my mistaken identity. You see, for a while I thought my identity was in being a nurse. I felt like if I didn’t do what I had gone to school to do, I wasn’t living out my calling. But then I realized, I would only ever live out my calling if I understood my identity as a beloved daughter of Christ. 

We can choose to live in God-centered identities that pursue His mission or we can choose to live in self-centered identities that wear a “Jesus is my homeboy” t-shirt. 

I have been an oncology {cancer} nurse for about two months. Being a novice at anything is unsettling, but especially so when it revolves around other people’s lives. When I tell people I work with cancer patients, most people’s first response is:

“Oh, that must be so sad! Isn’t it difficult?”[To this question, I have no easy answer.

If I’m being flat out honest – yes. It is extremely difficult. But it is also extremely rewarding. One day I might be holding a patient’s hand while they cry and the next I might be singing Christmas carols with a patient who loves to sing. One day I might see someone on the edge of death and the next day I will send a patient home ready for another day of life.  

It is a rollercoaster of emotions and a mess of mercies. 

In the short amount of time I have worked as an oncology nurse, I have learned so much from my patients. One man gave me this simple advice on his 87th birthday: “Be honest. Work hard.”As a dying woman wrote her own obituary, she told me the best thing she ever did was ‘marry a good friend’. 

Each patient teaches me the value of life. Every person deserves dignity in life and in death. [After all, Christ died an undignified death so we might have LIFE!]

They are teaching me to live a life that is worthy of the calling I have received (Ephesians 4:1). A life that brings hope, peace, and unconditional love. A difficult but eternally rewarding life. 

So while I know it is difficult, I would challenge you to live this kind of life. Remember who(se) you are. Allow God to show you why you’re here. And as my good friend Heather puts it,
Live Loved. 
Becki

Guest Post: Love God and Do as You Please

Editor's Note: Jenny Tokheim currently lives in Spain where she is part of a program called G42 Leadership Academy. She gets to look at the Mediterranean Sea all the time (that's what I gather from her Facebook photos) and grow and learn and hang out with really sweet people. I met Jenny when I spent the summer after my freshman year serving alongside with her with an organization called TeenServe. In the past four years, she has been an immense encouragement to me and my walk with Jesus. Jenny blogs over at Jenny4Jesus, where she has tons of neat ponderings, poems, and photos... check it out for more about her life in Spain! - HB

Love God and Do as You Please

When HB asked me to write a little ditty for her lovely blog, I wasn’t quite sure which direction to run in. I like to share about what Jesus is up to in this heart and mind of mine, but honestly, God has been shaping me in such crazy ways in this current season that I don’t recognize myself from week to week. It is a good thing to be shaped by the love of God.

I’m in a season of life and a place where Kingdom dreams get hashed out and brought to life, and in the spirit of that dreaming and planning, I wanted to issue a little challenge. It isn’t going to be long, at least in print, but if you really take some time and search that heart of yours, I think you’ll find some hidden [or not so hidden] treasure.

Over the past year, a quote from St. Augustine has been brought up numerous times, and I believe it’s worth some consideration. It’s seemingly a bit controversial, but I don’t believe it has to be too complicated.

“Love God and do as you please.”

Now that’s a loaded statement. Set aside what you think you know for a moment. Take a deep breath.

What if God has placed, in that very heart of yours, a Kingdom dream, a Kingdom purpose for His glory that would cause your heart to jump up and down with excitement? What if the outcome of your life with God was not only full of holiness, but also really exciting?

Friend, here’s the challenge:

Ask Him. Ask Him how He’s made you. Search that heart of yours that longs to serve Him, and I think you’ll find a beautiful dream for His glory. Reading this blog posting of mine won’t change your life, friend, but interacting and dreaming with the Living God certainly will. You can take my word for it.

So go! Right now! Pull out some paper and a pen, go for a walk, start playing some tunes---do whatever it is you do to meet with God, and ask Him to show you what, “Love God and do as you please,” means in your own life. Perhaps He’s given you a passion that you never thought was “spiritual enough” to be used for His glory. Maybe you’ve forgotten a part of your heart’s cry in order to be successful or accepted. Or, maybe you just need to be encouraged by the truth that God cares about that heart of yours.

Enjoy Him and this life He’s given you!

Joyfully His,

Jenny

Guest Post: Created by the Creator of Beauty

Editor's Note: I know Caitlin Elmore from EDGE Corps... we met out in Colorado at training back in May and have definitely been "social media" friends since- inspired by each others blogs, instagrams, etc! She serves at the University of Akron. (That's in Ohio... don't worry, I had to google it too) and has something like a bajillion siblings. Caitlin blogs over at  Engraved. Her blog is deep, silly, snarky, and filled with DIY, music, and life. She recently asked me to do a "10 Things I am Loving Right Now" post for her... make sure and check it out (after reading her post of course)! Without further ado, I am SO excited for you all to read this... it's a real gem! - HB

CREATED BY THE CREATOR OF BEAUTY

So when I was asked to write this I panicked a little bit. In a good way. I just could not figure out what to write on...a lot of things make me tick! Gold glitter, Beyonce, knitting, kittens, infinity scarves...

But in all seriousness, I feel pretty passionate about a lot of things and I was having trouble deciding what to write this precious guest post on. And then, I was scrolling through Hellogiggles this morning and one of the headlines stuck out: Creating the “Perfect” Man. What? This seemed out of character for their site. I had to know.

So I click on it and there is this hilarious picture of Viggo Mortensen with all these photoshopped body parts and such. Ah, I’ll just show you: here. The picture was in response to an article from Men’s Health magazine. Based on the passion stirring up in my heart, I knew I had to write about this.

I am about to tell you a dumb story about high school.  It’s 2005 and I am 15 years old. Every year in marching band we would have silly awards for our class. That year I won “Best Butt”... which some of the guys in my class took as an open door to make comments.  They never said anything mean... they were honestly trying to flatter me. But I was 15, growing into a new body, and very uncomfortable with the attention my body was getting. I was born into a family of women with child-bearing hips. I am what magazines called “Pear shaped.” When puberty hit and things started changing, I noticed, but now I knew that other people did too.

I was also a dancer at the time which meant that I was in a leotard and tights three to four days a week. Standing in front of a giant mirror. With ten other girls and their unique body types. It was then that I became an active player of what I like to call “The Comparison Game.” And now, with the comments the guys were making at school, all I could look at during ballet class was my giant butt (I wore a 4...) and how wrong my body was.

This is not the first time I struggled with body image. And this was definitely not the first thing to put the idea in my head that I had to look a certain way, but it’s a very vivid, awkward, and sometimes painful reminder that like most women, this is a deep issue in my heart that goes way back.

Honestly, I can’t handle that Men’s Health article. And I really can’t handle the picture that accompanied it. But I will say, I was encouraged to see comments from men saying the article was inappropriate, offensive to women, and offensive to MEN. So kudos guys. You rock.

Who has seen the Dove beauty campaign ads? While the campaign itself could be controversial based on conflicting messages from Dove and their media team, I do really enjoy the ads. This one in particular:

Ok so the “he” in the video is this young man who apparently has a crush on Amy. But what if Amy is us (because she is, isn’t she? Quick: name twelve things wrong with your appearance.) and “he” is God.

So, I’m not going to talk about how we need to show more “average girls” on tv or how “curvy is beautiful.” Yeah those things are true, BUT if I am going to claim to be a daughter of the King, then I am not going to tell you that you are beautiful because you have “real” curves, but because YOU ARE ALSO A DAUGHTER (or son) OF THE KING. We are beautiful because we were created, beautifully and wonderfully, by the creator of beauty.

To our Father’s sorrow, we chose to redefine beauty. And we’ve kind of gotten to a point where those redrawn definitions of beauty and perfection are just accepted, even among Christian women.

I would look better if I lost 10 pounds. My skin is too white. I have cellulite on my thighs. My hair doesn’t ever look right. These are all lies. And they aren’t limited to appearance. I am too loud. I am too quiet. No one thinks I’m funny. No one wants to be around me. If I were just more gentle. If I were just more bold.

Stop. Breathe.

What does God say?

“All beautiful you are, my darling; there is no flaw in you.” - Song of Songs 4:7

“The king is enthralled by your beauty; honor him, for he is your Lord.” - Psalm 45:11

“He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” - Ecclesiastes 3:11

“God saw all that He had made, and it was very good.” - Genesis 1:31

Honestly, this is just scratching the surface of why we are perfect in Christ. We are beautiful (men and women included) and we are worth SO MUCH MORE than society has led us to believe.

Because I believe strongly in applications, I will leave you with a list of things that you can do to start to reverse the effects lies about beauty have had on your heart.

1. Stop filling your mind with junk. You be the judge of what is “junk” and what is harmful for your heart, but here are some quick examples. Beauty and women’s interest magazines, music videos, the Victoria’s Secret fashion show, The Bachelor, A LOT of movies. I am not saying that you are bad for watching movies and tv shows, but if you are really struggling and want to be really serious about focusing your heart on truth, get rid of the junk that feeds the lies.
2.  Fight with truth. Write down every lie you are believing and everything that is “wrong” with you. Now get out your Bible and do some serious reading (and some serious praying). For every lie your wrote down, find a truth that proves it wrong.
3. Take care of yourself. I don’t mean counting calories, and dieting and exercising excessively. I mean finding clothing that is modest and makes you feel beautiful in the right way. Also, staying active in any capacity that will give you energy, keep you healthy, and give you a more positive outlook.
4. Find a network of encouragement. Are you interacting with a group of people who tear you down or build you up in things other than truth? Get out of there. Solid Christian community will build you up in the right ways. Also, seek accountability. Find a woman (or if you are a man, a man) who you can tell everything to and (this is key) who will speak to you truthfully.
5. Incorporate some cheesiness into your life. Leave a love letter from God next to your mirror. Let Scripture remind you who you really are in Christ.
6. Most importantly, spend time with your Father. Who better to remind you of your worth than the one who deemed you worthy enough to come into existence? Focus on your identity in Christ. Focus on what is true and good.

You guys, we are beautiful. We are so beautiful. God calls us lovely. He calls us his beloved. He did not intend for us to operate out of these lies of unworthiness. “Finally, brothers [and sisters] whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable –if anything is excellent or praiseworthy– think about such things.” - Philippians 4:8

I wish I had pages and pages to talk further on this issue. This post doesn’t even begin to go deep enough, but I hope it was at least an encouragement to you. You are in no way alone in your struggle with body and self image.

I will leave you with this song. What a powerful message of truth! 

Live Loved (because that’s what they say here and I think it’s super awesome),

Caitlin

Guest Post: If God is Love, I think Jesus is Justice

Editor's Note: I'm so excited to introduce our very first guest post! Let's begin the journey to see what makes people tick! Today's post is by Laura Turner. She will be graduating from UWEC this summer with an Organizational Communication degree and a self-made minor in Community Development. Laura's main passions are discipleship/Bible teaching and social justice. Before she came to college she went to a one year Bible school program through Torchbearers in Germany and will be returning for two years come fall to be the female RA to encourage the students and build Godly community. She's a dreamer and sharing about those dreams is her favorite hobby. - HB

If God is Love, I think Jesus is Justice

Why we cannot re-define Justice to our own understanding (and must be aware of falling prey to our relativity-obsessed society) and the crucial significance of our knowledge of Christ shaping what we do, never the other way around.

 

“An Idol is whatever you look at and say, in your heart of hearts, – ‘ If I have that, then I’ll feel my life has meaning, then I’ll know I have value, then I’ll feel significant and secure.” Tim Keller

I wonder if soon I am headed to a point where I would ditch Jesus for “justice”. “Justice” in quotes because, really what is justice without Jesus? I am so angered by the sex industry: Apathy of the church in taking a stand and the fact that there are millions of girls around the world that are servicing (the nice way to put it) 20 men a night. Every night. They have no love, no home and seemingly no hope. What do I do as I feel this pain so deeply? It makes the most sense to just go out and end it at any cost! I’m tempted to ignore prayer and searching the scriptures because of my urgency to end the problem! At any cost. But I praise You that I’m so intertwined, Your love is so written on my heart that truly, somehow I know there is no justice without Jesus. Justice. True justice. It’s what only God can bring. It is justice that causes freedom for all involved, not just the ones I deem to be oppressed.

Oh how He loves us. That “WHILE WE WERE YET SINNERS (hostile, evil, haters of God, haters of good, desirous of death) CHRIST DIED FOR US.” Romans 5:8. The Lord in His divine love that is solely of Him, saves the trafficker and the trafficked in the exact same way. He saves them from the oppression of sin and death. What death to the soul, spirit, mind, heart and body have the traffickers experienced? They have not lived. They have not experienced God or at least they have not let themselves experience hope of His love. But, Oh How He loves us. Seeing the plight of each man without comparing one to another, without counting his own sin that he did to others and to God against him, but saves him, cradles him, rescues him, redeems him, changes him, washes him clean and carries him home all the same. What weeping in joy and praise there will be from the trafficker who comes to know love that covers all- “Amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now am found, was blind, but now I see.”*

Praise Our Great God. I still pray that He saves the girls tortured and living in death in sex slavery, and most of me wishes evil upon the oppressors. But by Christ He has opened my eyes so I can see my sin in His light.

Lord, forgive me. Heal my heart. May I never choose “justice” over you, because I don’t believe your goodness, your power, your proactivity in redeeming the world. For you are much more active than me, You are the only one who can stop evil and redeem what was broken and dead. You go farther than me in redeeming the oppressor as well as the oppressed. My heart is so much smaller than yours. “For your thoughts are not my thoughts, neither are My ways you ways,” declares the LORD, “For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so are My ways above your ways, and My thoughts above your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9

This is one tiny fraction of what the LORD is doing in this world to further His kingdom and His love. He is gracious to deal with each of us as we need. There is much more to the story God is writing on my heart as well. Thanks for reading.

For more information on sex trafficking, visit exoduscry.com

* (John Newton wrote these words to Amazing Grace-after he gave his life to Christ and left his job as a slave-ship captain)