Letter from Mary, By Marvina S.

Letter from Mary

By Marvina S.

So this week I've been just thinking about Christmas and about Mary. Mary is the mother of Jesus.  If any of you don't know about how Jesus was born, it talks about it in Luke chapter 2. Since this article is about a letter to Elizabeth, though, you need to read from Chapter 1 all the way through chapter 2.  It's a beautiful story and it was a story I've been thinking a lot about.  Now just some info... Elizabeth was Mary's cousin, who they never saw that often.  Elizabeth and Mary were very close, so I took the liberty to see if I could feel, what Mary felt, that night when she had baby Jesus.  Now Mary was probably around 14 when she had the baby, and I'm 23, but I still felt something amazing as I wrote this.  I am Mary in this letter and I'm writing to my cousin Elizabeth; so here it is...hope you all like it and feel something too.

January 13, 30 B.C.

                 My Dearest Elizabeth,

How I've longed to write to you for a while, but never seem to have the time until now.  I've missed you so much and it’s been hard to be so far away from you.  Besides, Joseph, there’s not that many people that I feel comfortable talking to…so it can get pretty lonely at times.  How are you and Zechariah?  How is adorable little John doing?  I bet Zechariah is loving father hood.  Looking at John when he was a newborn, I know he’s going to grow up to be handsome and strong like his papa.  As he gets older, you will sure have your hands full, with him being so full of energy and all; it will keep you young I’m sure. 

Well so much has happened since we last saw each other.  Joseph and I have been so blessed.  I don’t even know where to begin.  However, not knowing when I will see you again or for that matter, write to you again, I will start from the beginning and tell you everything that has happened. Shortly after I left your home, Joseph got a message stating that we need to go to Bethlehem for the Census and Tax.  Oh how I dreaded that trip because it was long and I was pregnant.  We had to travel by donkey, which was hard on my belly; however we didn't have a choice.  I walked when I could and when I got tired, I rode the donkey.  However the donkey got tired too and the trip went by so slow.  Joseph, the kind man that he is, never once complained, even though his facial expressions gave him away every time.  It’s funny how when you have been with someone for so long, you know when they are tired or even not telling you how they are feeling or what is on their mind.  He was really tired and it took us a long time to get to the Bethlehem from Nazareth. By the time we arrived, all the rooms at the inns were full.  All Joseph and I wanted to do was to just find a place and rest; was that so much to ask for?  But inn after inn, slammed door after slammed door, we began to lose hope and faith.  Oh Elizabeth, I just couldn't stop crying.  I was so uncomfortable being pregnant and afraid that we would never find a place and I would have to have my baby in the dusty road.  Poor Joseph was exhausted too.  I think he was worried and a little annoyed but for the sake of me, he tried to hide it.  Finally, Joseph came across an inn that had a stable and talked the owner into letting us stay there.  The owner gave us things to keep warm, but he was not really nice.  The stable was nasty and really uncomfortable with the straw everywhere, but it was shelter which we needed. With the animals being there, they kept the place really warm and from that night, that became our home.  Who would have thought of me being in a stable?  It was so weird and strange for me, and as a wife, so not ok, but I was grateful for what we had.

I will never forget that place because I ended up having the baby right there, the day after we arrived.  I’m so glad I was with you when you had John. I learned so much from your mid wife; which helped me when I had my baby.  The pain was unbearable and it felt like it took for hours, but then I saw him…our beautiful baby boy, which we name…Jesus.  Joseph was a mess throughout the entire labor process, but when the baby came out; you could tell from his face, he was just so happy to be a new papa.  Elizabeth, baby Jesus is so beautiful.  Since we didn't have a real bed for him, we put him in a manger.  He has curly black hair, and bright wonderful eyes just like your little John.  I’m sure they will be the best of friends.  His hands are big so I know he will be a great carpenter just like his father. Tears filled our eyes, as we held our brand new baby boy.  I just can’t describe him or the feeling we felt when we held him for the first time; though I’m sure you can imagine, you having little John not too long ago.  I never want harm to come to him, and I want him to live a long and happy life.

When the town’s people heard about our baby, they all came to see him.  People came from all over and brought gifts and cute things for the baby.  Joseph and I were so surprised as to the love of the people.  We've never felt more honored to have been blessed with such a beautiful baby boy.  Last night some shepherds came to see him, and we shared the stable with them for the night.  They were so kind and generous and amazed as to how wonderful he was.  The women came and checked on him; they said he looked good and healthy and gave us some skins to keep him warm, some milk to feed him, and some food for us.  We told stories and sang songs.  It was nice making friends since we were so far from home and what we knew to be familiar. It was hard being far from you and Joseph’s family.  We are going to have to leave the country tomorrow morning.  Some important men were in town last night watching the stars.  They said that King Herod has sent out a decree that all Jewish newborn babies are to be killed.  When I heard this, I thought, he must be afraid of us, for him to do such a horrible thing.  So we are leaving as soon as we are able to travel.  The men gave us gold, frankincense and myrrh for the travel, since we have no money because of the trip. I am so grateful for the help that we have received.  I don’t know what we would have done if all those kind people didn't help at all.  Joseph says we should try and get to Egypt and stay there until we hear that it is ok for us to return home.  Take care of your son and your family too Elizabeth.  I can’t wait for the day when we can be together again.  Our little boys can play, the guys can talk and we can go for walks and talk like we always do.  I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers as I ask you do the same for us.  Til we meet or write again…

Love always,

Mary

Who I Am, By Marvina Stedge

Who I Am
By Marvina Stedge

So I know I haven’t written a lot lately.  But I wanted to just write and tell you all what’s been on my heart.  So I’ve been struggling with being myself, finding out who I am, and dealing with life issues like marriage, and finding myself in God’s eyes.  I’ve always known about God and I’ve always been into music, especially worship and contemporary Christian music.  Worshipping the Lord is where I feel the most connected to Him.  I do read my Bible but I feel way more connected when I am worshipping Him and praising His name.  Dealing with finding out who you are, not only in yourself, but also in God’s eyes, can be a very big deal.  For about 3 days, I have been listening to this song called "You Steady My Heart." This song is by Kari Jobe, whom I look up to. She is just so humble, so real, and so into the Lord - and she knows who she is.  But what I really love about this song is the chorus: 

Even when it hurts,
Even when it's hard,
Even when it all just falls apart,
I will run to You,
Cause I know that You are,
Lover of my soul,
Healer of my scars,
You steady my heart. 

These words are so real and so true, and remind me of a verse that has been on my heart, Psalms 55:22, which says: “Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.” I’ve been reading this verse for a few days and have realized that I can give all my burdens to Him because He really does care what’s on my heart.  I have also realized that I need to start letting Him take complete control over my mind, my soul, my heart and life - so that I can fully be happy with myself, and I can know and learn who I am in Him. So when you are feeling down and you are just going through some struggles in your life, whether it’s within yourself or just your life, turn to the Lord because He cares and wants to be there for you.  I’m not only praying for myself, but also I am praying for anyone who is struggling.  Let the Lord steady your heart and completely fill you with His grace.

References:

*http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/k/kari_jobe/steady_my_heart.html, *http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm%2055:22&version=NIV

The History of Father's Day, Marvina Stedge

The History of Father's Day

Marvina Stedge
June 15, 2012
 

We always celebrate father’s day, but did you ever wonder how it even got started? Well as I was trying to figure out what to write…I was researching fathers day and I found this: Well here's an article that might help:

  Sonora Dodd, of Washington, first had the idea of a "father's day." She thought of the idea for Father's Day while listening to a Mother's Day sermon in 1909.

Sonora wanted a special day to honor her father, William Smart. Smart, who was a Civil War veteran, was widowed when his wife died while giving birth to their sixth child. Mr. Smart was left to raise the newborn and his other five children by himself on a rural farm in eastern Washington state.

After Sonora became an adult she realized the selflessness her father had shown in raising his children as a single parent. It was her father that made all the parental sacrifices and was, in the eyes of his daughter, a courageous, selfless, and loving man. Sonora's father was born in June, so she chose to hold the first Father's Day celebration in Spokane, Washington on the 19th of June, 1910.

President Calvin Coolidge, in 1924, supported the idea of a national Father's Day. Then in 1966 President Lyndon Johnson signed a presidential proclamation declaring the 3rd Sunday of June as Father's Day.

Now I mean I can’t just go without including this verse: 1 Corinthians 4:14-17 says:  “I am writing this not to shame you but to warn you as my dear children. Even if you had ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel.Therefore I urge you to imitate me. For this reason I have sent to you Timothy, my son whom I love, who is faithful in the Lord. He will remind you of my way of life in Christ Jesus, which agrees with what I teach everywhere in every church.

Sonora realized that her father did what he could to help raise them, and she wanted a day that recognized fathers for all the hard work they really do.  God wants that too. He doesn’t want to scold you; He doesn’t find the joy in scolding you, He finds the joy in raising you up and helping you become what He knows you can become.  He wants to be your father, when you feel like you don’t have a father.  He wants to share your joys with you, your problems, your excitements, everything. So let Him be that father for you, especially when things with your own father are not going so well.
 

Information and story from: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080613144632AAhAon4

and http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/teenage/When-did-Father-s-Day-start--_7665063

I need you to love me, By Marvina S.

I need you to love me.

By Marvina S.

"But I need you to love me,
And I, I won’t keep my heart from you this time.
And I’ll stop this pretending that I can,
Somehow deserve what I already have
I need you to love me"

"I need you to love me."  That is something we all feel sometime in our lives. We need to feel loved. These lyrics are from a song by Barlowgirl. They are a Christian girl rock band and they basically go where God tells them to go.

Here are some more of the lyrics and the chorus.

"Why, why are You still here with me
Didn't You see what I've done?
In my shame I want to run and hide myself
But it's here I see the truth
I don't deserve You
Chorus: But I need you to love me,
And I, I won’t keep my heart from you this time.
And I’ll stop this pretending that I can,
Somehow deserve what I already have
I need you to love me."

This basically says "God, don't you know what I've done? Why are you still with me? I really don't deserve your love."  God has unconditional love and even when you are far away from Him, all you have to do is cry and call out to Him, and He will hear you.  He wants you to know that He never leaves you... just like it says in Hebrews 13:5, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." 

He wants you to understand that His love is unconditional.  We may not deserve His love because we are all sinners, but guys... He is there. That's what's so amazing about God's love... it never fades away.  So if you need God's love tonight, go to a quiet place, whether with a friend, a parent, or just yourself, and pray to God.  Say, "Lord, I need Your love right now... I need You to pour Your love over me, wrap me in Your arms and just help me feel the love I have never felt before." Say, "Lord, I know I don't deserve You, I know I don't deserve Your love, but I understand that Your love is unconditional, and You will never leave me or forsake me." Say, "Lord, I'm crying out to You tonight, today, I'm ready to let You in... I need Your love, Lord... I need You to love me." 

I hope someone really opens up their heart to the Lord and that they feel the love of the Father... it's an amazing feeling and it's something that will always be with you.

Wearing a Smile on Your Face - Even Through the Hard Times, By Marvina S.

Wearing a Smile on Your Face - Even Through the Hard Times

By Marvina S.

"The joy of the lord is your strength" - Nehemiah 8:10

Have you ever had such a horrible day and didn't want to smile or talk to anyone? Well I have and it can really make your day worse. A lot of times however, a smile can bring you up and make your day better. If someone is having a bad day, you can smile and it immediately makes their day so much better. A friend of mine, who is many years younger than me, lost her entire home this week. She was at home and she was sick, she decided to take a nap, and when she woke up there was smoke. She called her parents and then called 911. Her family ended up losing everything from pictures, to clothes, to important bills, to school things, everything. But even though she lost everything, she said that she is going to wear a smile on her face because she wants to. That shows so much heart because her family lost everything but she was still able to smile and say she's glad her and her family are ok. So the next time you feel that nothing can make your day better, try wearing a smile on your face and remember that the joy of the lord is your strength....it can go a long way.

Should a Christian date or marry a non believer or Christian? Marvina S.

Should a Christian date or marry a non believer or Christian?

By Marvina S.

This is a hard question because it’s a question that can offend some people, but it’s also one that can confuse some people.

However, I don’t believe it is wise to date or marry a non believer. In the Bible, Jesus gives us a Scripture that explains what he wants us not to do. In 2 Corinthians 6:14 it says “Do not be unequally yoked with an unbeliever.” Now before you can really understand what this is saying, you need to first understand what the word yoked means. A yoke is the piece that is holding two animals together and it’s usually wooden. So for example let’s take a camel and a donkey, and they are connected by a yoke. Since these two animals are completely different, they are going to believe different things, which means that they are going to struggle in any task that they do, and the owner of these two animals will have a hard time getting them to do what he/she needs them to do. That is because they are different, they are not the same animal and they do different things. Just like a Christian and non believer.
If you are a Christian, you are going to believe in Jesus, and all that he stands for, and if you date or marry a non Christian, that person isn’t going to want to hear anything about God or Jesus or anything. You will always be fighting, especially if you have children. You will want to raise the child in a church, and the other person won’t want you to do that. You will want to read your Bible all the time and talk about God, and the other person will not. There are going to be struggles and it’s just not going to flow smoothly, and eventually the relationship will probably end. So if you are single, and you are a Christian, God wants you to seek out another Christian. Someone you can talk about God with and all of that. This may be a trying thing, because as we all know, good things, all come in God’s time. So like I said before, it’s not a sin, and there are things you can do if you are already in a relationship like that, but it’s not wise. Pray to God about this, and if you feel that the relationship you are in just isn't working because you have a strong faith in God and the other person doesn't, and you are always fighting and it’s just tearing you down and your faith, then get out of the relationship and seek a believer.