Everything in its Season and a Season for Everything By TreAnna B.

Everything in its Season and a Season for Everything

By TreAnna B.

In a few short months, I'll turn 20. While I feel extremely blessed to be where I'm at in life—sophomore in college, gaining headway with my writing career, meeting wonderful new people—I look around at others I've graduated high school with and feel like they've gotten so much farther than I have. I can't help but think to myself, “God what are you doing with my life?”

It seems that everyday my peers are engaging in something much more extravagant than what I'm currently doing. One of my friends has become a celebrity almost overnight, another has opened her own business. Many more have already gotten married and settled down with little families of their own.

Then there's me.

Single. Nothing close to celebrity status. Definitely not an entrepreneur. I'm just a normal college student, trying to stay afloat amid all the stresses of college life.

           

As I continued to dwell on this fact, I only became increasingly unhappy. I became easily frustrated too. Not only at myself but at God. I felt like I wasn't doing enough to keep up with everyone around me. Then one day I received an email that changed my entire perspective.

Hilary Beth sent out an email that contained a story about an eight year old girl who had used Write For Him, GGFG's first book to start a Christian club at recess.

After reading this I just sat back and stared at my computer screen. After a few moments, I realized I was grinning like a Cheshire cat. “You are using me.” I remember saying to God.  While it may not be anything huge right now, God was using some of what I had written in a way I never expected Him to.

Ecclesiastes3:1 states, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.” While my friends are already settling down with a family, and I'm not, I have to realize its because it isn't my time yet.

           

I'm constantly asking God to use me and my talents to glorify Him. It shouldn't come as a surprise to me when He answers that plea, but it does. Just as with the eight year old girl.

No, I may not be famous. I may not have a lot of money. I may not have a family of my own, or even a business of my own, but none of that matters anymore. I have realized that God has a different plan for me right now. When He is ready for me to settle down, I will. If He chooses to expand my writing career, it'll happen. There is a season for everything...mine just hasn't come yet.

Acts 13:52, By Abby W.

Acts 13:52

 By Abby W.

 Has someone ever acted ungrateful towards you? Have you ever done something kind for

someone only to have them throw it back in your face?

That's what happened to Paul and Barnabas. Directed by the Holy Spirit to proclaim the word of

God, the two traveled from the church at Antioch, to Cyprus, to Pisidian Antioch. On Cyprus,

Paul and Barnabus confronted a false profit, blinding him through the Holy Spirit and converting

many to Christianity. Once they reached Pisidian Antioch, the two were invited by the synagogue

rulers to encourage the people.

Filled with the Holy Spirit, Paul and Barnabus spoke the word of God to the people- both

Gentiles and Jews. Through the Grace of God, Paul and Barnabus were successful in spreading

the word of Jesus, too successful for the liking of some. Paul and Barnabus were invited back to

speak the next Sabbath. Multitudes of people came to hear the two speak, and some of the Jews

became jealous and spoke against Paul, Barnabus, and their message (God's word).

This was an extreme case of jealousy. Paul and Barnabus were speaking with the power of the

Holy Spirit, so by being jealous of Paul and Barnabus, the Jews were actually being jealous of

God. These people knew God too, they were his Chosen People, the people he had led out of

captivity in Egypt, through the desert, and sent his Son to die for. Paul and Barnabus had been

proclaiming God's word to them and teaching them about Jesus so that they might be saved, and

yet because of jealousy, the Jews were entirely unresponsive and ungrateful.

Paul and Barnabus did not back down. They knew that God had appointed them as his

messengers, and that there were those in the crowd willing to be saved. Paul and Barnabus spoke

boldly to the Jews, insisting that even though they were unwilling to accept God's mercy and

salvation, the Gentiles were willing to accept the truth, and many believed on the spot. Rather

than repenting for their vicious slander, however, the Jews insighted a riot against Paul and

Barnabus, expelling them from the city.

Paul and Baunabus were not dismayed, however. Acts 13:52 tells us that "the disciples were

filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit."

What?!?! I cannot tell you the last time I was thrown out from anything for spreading the God's

word, let alone felt happy afterwards! Yet, that's exactly what happened to Paul and Barnabus,

and not only were they happy about it, they were filled with the Holy Spirit. Paul and Barnabus

knew that God had a plan, and that what had happened was a part of his plan. They did not know

the plan, and they did not see how what had happened fit into his plan, but they had faith in God

and continued to witness for him.

The story of Paul and Barnabus is an important example for all of us. Each of us is called to

witness for God. Each of us will face naysayers, and we must speak boldly against them. Most of

all, we must have faith that our lives are a part of God's plan, and continue to live joyously for

Him.

Procrastination & Witnessing, By Makaeyla Z.

Procrastination & Witnessing

By Makaeyla Z.

Procrastination is very common among highschoolers. I am terrible about it! Just earlier tonight (Sunday) I looked at my planner and I have probably three tests tomorrow that I haven't studied for, not to mention, I just finished all my homework (it's 11:36 pm). I had three vocab papers, an English paper, and seven geometry papers. Oh, and I have to buy To Kill A Mockingbird by Thursday. I have the craziest schedule this year and I definitely need to work on this. The bible talks about procrastination a lot. 

Proverbs 13:4 "The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richely supplied."(ESV) 

Proverbs 12:24 "The hand of the diligent will rule, while the slothful will be put to forced labor." (ESV)

Slothfullness is one of the "seven deadly sins." You can't procrastinate but say you aren't slothfull, because slothfullness is being lazy and if you weren't lazy you wouldn't procrastinate. As Christians we should be motivated to do anything, and everything as we do it for Christ, whether that's biology homework or reading our Bible. 

One thing you should NEVER wait until the last minute to do is SHARE THE GOSPEL. I know that's hard to do for a lot of people. Hello! I hate confrontation, no matter what the circumstances. But you don't have to start witnessing and sharing the gospel by going straight up to someone and talking about God. The best way to witness to someone is by loving them, and showing them: This is Where I Was, This is Where I Am, and This is Where I Am Going!! Show them your testimony by being strong, and loving no matter what is going on behind the scenes. I know that can be hard, especially in highschool. Trust me, at a football game last Friday a girl told me she hated me because I ate lunch with her boyfriend who happened to be my best friend since seventh grade. I wanted to yell at her and punch her, but I couldn't. I had to put on my best Christian-Lady-Like face and walk away. I still have to love her even though she "hates" me. I pray she sees God in me through that. There are so many ways you can share the Gospel at school without actually having to talk to someone about it. Though, this is just a first step. Eventually you will have to talk. 

You can: Read your Bible at lunch or whenever you have time. Pray before you eat. Respect people who don't respect you. Offer to pray for people (yes i know this is talking but it's not exactly the same) especially hurt football players. Listen to podcasts instead of music, or just listen to Christian music. Remember, "I can do all things through him who strengthens me" (Philippians 4:13 ESV)

Last First Time, By Hillary-Beth

Last First Time

By Hillary-Beth Koenig

Remember Kindergarten? It was all about firsts... and lots of pictures to document this!

The first box of crayons I got for school purposes was a 96 count, and I still have my first grade erasers, some pencils that have my initials, though the permanent marker is now fading.

This is my last first time.

This year I have my last binders, my last new markers and pens for studying, my last fresh start. This is my last opportunity to notice my classmates around me and their needs, my last chance to encourage them. This is my last chance to make an impact on other students. This is the last year I'll have to sit there with my schedule and wonder if I'll use my time wisely.

This is the last new schoolyear, and I want to give it all to God!
One of my dearest friends gave me this advice just this morning: "Stay in the Word... God knows the true desires of your heart... 'Be still and know' that He is God, and you are not."

I hope you will be aware of those around you this year, as well, young or old, at school, in stores, at parks, with your families, even at church - look for the opportunities that God will put before you!

How to Reach Out to Others – With Love, By Hillary-Beth

How to Reach Out to Others – With Love 

 By Hillary-Beth Koenig

Part 3: Overcoming the Excuses...But...

In Part 1 I talked about Viewing Others As God Sees Them; You do see their sin. You do see their worth as God’s creation. Then you choose to love them despite their sin, just as God sees us.
In Part 2 I talked about Letting them know what you think about them. This includes praying for those opportunities, making opportunities out of everyday situations and random acts of kindness.
Maybe you’ve read Part 1 and Part 2. And maybe you are thinking, “But…”
If you are, this part is for you.
But she is still so mean. But he still frowns at me every day. But she doesn’t try to get along. But she won’t listen when I’m trying to be nice. But nothing’s changing at home. But he doesn’t care about the things that matter most to me, even God. But she still yells. But she doesn’t deserve nice treatment. But he hurt everyone so badly. But she’s not sorry.
Do any one of those sound like the things you might say in your mind? Do you feel this way toward someone in your heart? Do you see no hope, no change, nothing new, and just give up?
There might be times in your life, and situations, where you need to separate yourself from some person or group of people because they really aren’t changing and they are affecting your walk with God. But, most of the time, God has the people He does in our lives for a reason; that we could point them to Him!
Even when you can’t see God working in their lives, you shouldn’t give up. Even when you can’t see any changes, you shouldn’t give in. Yes, that’s right – you still have the duty and privilege of showing them compassion. If they ask you why, you will be able to tell them about God’s compassion for you. If someone else makes fun of you for doing the right thing, or asks you why you would be nice to someone who is awful to you, you can tell that person about God’s love. You will be able to tell them that God wants to give them the same mercy and grace!
But…
You still are struggling to decide to do the right thing. There are so many excuses. But guess what? When you are before God, what decisions will you have wished you would have made? Make the right decision now.
First, get in mind the person or people who you are having trouble reaching out to.
Now, ask God to help you decide to think of them as He does.
Maybe get out a piece of paper, a journal, or something you can keep. You can write something like this: I have decided to think about X as God does. I have asked Him to help me in deciding this.
This is the next step: Ask God to help you see opportunities.
Maybe on that paper or journal you can write: I have asked God to help me find opportunities to reach out to X. I am not going to base my actions and feeling on what X does, but rather on God’s goodness and mercy. I have asked God to help me use these opportunities wisely, that is, so I will point to God in what I do and say. I’m not perfect, and I realize that. But I commit myself, today, to being godly. That is, seeking what God wills and living it out, by deciding to look past the sin to see the people God created.
Does that make sense?
Maybe not.
Because, if I got what I deserved…well, I’ve sinned. Sinners go to hell. Hell is real and some people die every day that aren’t saved. They go to hell. I’ve been saved. My heart cries out for people to turn to God. If I can do anything to help them see their way is not God’s way, and to lead them to God’s way or a little closer to God’s way, then I am doing my part.
I challenge you – commit yourself to God. Submit yourself to God. And reach out to others as He provides the opportunities.

How to Reach Out to Others – With Love, By Hillary-Beth

How to Reach Out to Others – With Love

By Hillary-Beth Koenig

Part 2: Let them know what you think about them

If you are serious about reaching out to others through God's love, you will learn to view them as God sees them, as we talked about in Part 1. Now that you know how to get your own heart right about this issue, we are going to talk about how to take some action!

1. The best way to find opportunities to share God's love, is to pray for those opportunities to come! Spending time praying for the person's heart, for your own heart, for the situations that could come up when you see them, and for situations to come about that makes it easy to point to God, are all very important. It not only shows your desire to serve, but it gives you a desire to serve. I guess God knew that sometimes it's not easy to do the right thing - in fact, sometimes we REALLY don't want to do anything but teach that person a lesson or two. But that's not going to win their heart to God.

2. The best way to use opportunities to share God's love, is to make opportunities! That is, if someone drops a pencil, spring over to pick it up. Does your little annoying sister like the blue skittles best? Then pick out all your blue skittles and give them to her! Does that teacher just keep frowning? Maybe bring her a note to wish her a good day. Does that kid look lonely over there now that he has no one to pick on? Ask if he wants to eat lunch over with you! You never know when your kindness might change someone's whole day, and a day can bring about a lot; it only takes one moment to realize need for God, only one moment to ask God into your life, but a lifetime of walking with Him to become like Christ. Maybe they are trying and just need someone to be nice enough to give them a chance. Maybe they don't know how. It's not up to us to change them, but it is up to us to give them the opportunity to know God can change everything!

By giving them your best, your time, your talents, your kindness...you are telling someone that they are worth it in your eyes. If they can see how much you love God, they are sure to see that God must think they are worth it. If they ask you why you were nice, why you paid attention, or why you gave to them, you can tell them that it's because Jesus noticed you, paid the price for your sins, gave up everything for you - and this thing you just did is nothing compared to what He can and does give!

In summary, the best opportunities, are the ones where God is the focus, your heart is in it, and you don't let excuses keep you back. Wait, that last part sounds like Part 3...that's next time ;)

How to Reach Out to Others – With Love, By Hillary-Beth Koenig

How to Reach Out to Others – With Love 

 By Hillary-Beth Koenig

Part 1: Viewing Others As God Sees Them

There’s the girl in class that always acts like a snob, the boy next door that always breaks stuff when he comes over, the man at the nursing home who yells a lot for no reason, the toddler that is so selfish she can’t let anyone sleep tonight, the old lady at the store that glares when she rings up the merchandise, the teacher that never smiles or answers gently, the girl at church who can’t seem to say anything nice, and the sibling that constantly teases and taunts in a way that frustrates and annoys...how do we love these people? Probably none of the ones in that list sound loveable! How do we reach out to them with God's love and show them the way?
1.       You do see their sin. God in His perfect love has to judge us against the Law, which shows we are sinners. He, being perfect love, does not act like we aren’t sinners; He does not act like there’s no problem, or like there’s no pain going to come from our sin. He tells us the truth, but He doesn’t leave us there. He worked through the ages to bring us hope – Jesus died for our sins, and rose again to give us eternal life, if we believe! Romans 3:23; Romans 5:21
2.       You do see their worth as God’s creation. God tells us we are fearfully and wonderfully made! We are made in His image, and we are precious in His sight! He loves us so much that He cares about the details in our lives – like when we get up, when we go to bed, when we cry, even what we think about! He cares about us more than He even cares about the birds and flowers we see, and look how much He has provided for them in every way!  Psalm 139
3.       You choose to love them despite their sin, just as God sees us. That is, God chose to love us while we were still filthy, dirty, proud sinners. He gave it all for us – Jesus sacrificed His life for us, and willingly took on the sin of the world – along with the shame, pain, and awfulness of our sins. If God could give us such love despite how much we deserved the punishment, can we do anything but give all we can to show love to those He puts in our lives? It might hurt sometimes, it might get messy sometimes, it might take some sacrifices, but once we view others as God sees them, it will be worth it! 1 John 4:19
We have to see past their sins and to their souls.  We are just like the very people that hurt us, annoy us, treat us unfairly,  are selfish...we are sinners. If it were not for God's grace, we would not have Jesus as our Savior! It is an honor, a duty, and a blessing to tell others about this change God gives in our hearts when we love like Jesus does.

Back to School!, by Anonymous

Back to School!

By Anonymous 

Maybe you’ve bee in school all summer, or maybe you’ve had the summer off. Maybe you are in a private school, maybe you’re home schooled, or maybe you go to a public school. Maybe there’s lots of people around you all the time, or maybe just a few.
No matter what, you can glorify God in your unique place! You are called to honor God, right where you are.
1. Doing your best, for the Lord!
People notice, and then you can explain why you do your best, when the opportunity comes.
Worried? It’s not being a teacher’s pet or a stuck-up….IF you are humble and your motive is to please God! God made you wonderful, and you honor Him when you do your best. That’s what matters. 
2. Witnessing through school supplies?
Have a notebook or binder? Buying pencils? Decorate them to say "Jesus loves you!" or with some Christian lyrics that praise God!
School supplies decorated with a theme pointing to God can be an awesome witness, not just for classroom settings, but also while you are in the doctor‘s or dentist office, shopping around town, on a trip, with a home school group, anywhere!!
Not only that, but I bet it will keep you encouraged throughout the year. Besides, they can be fun to make. 
3. Mean girls - being light and hope is hard but worthwhile.
Personal Story:
I know how rough it is to listen to all the girls whisper and know they are saying things … bad things … about me, my friends, or innocent new people.
Want to know something awesome?
If you do your best to be kind to them despite them being mean to you, it goes a long way. If when you are with others, and they start talking about how mean those girls are, you say (instead of a juicy tid-bit about how they hurt you also) "We ought to just pray for them." .... If you pray for them daily and look for ways to share God with them, and His love toward them, life will be a lot easier. It's hard at first to learn to live like that, but it pays off HUGE. My yearbook for my senior year proves that.
People who lied about me, were absolutely cruel to me, and brought me to tears once, saw my reactions (though sometimes I failed). Generally they must have seen Christ instead of me, cause in my yearbook, they complimented me genuinely and thanked me for being there when they had a rough day. I cried when I got home after reading some of those.
Honest, I've lived both ways, the other way hurts more, even though it seems logical to take revenge or be upset or anything else.
The End.
4. How are you spiritually prepared this year? 
Here’s some quizzes that might be cool to start off the school-year with! Quizzes For Your Life!
5. Sharing in love, being unashamed 
When someone asks you about your schooling, say it with spirit, and try to turn the conversation to point to God and how He is working in your life! Even the topic of school can be a way to witness, then! Don’t get impatient with questions or embarrassed.
6. Pray 
Whether your curriculum includes many of God’s truths or not, you can be growing closer to Him by reading the Bible and then seeing how your schoolwork can teach you more about God, the people He loves and made in His image, and the awesome world He created.  Pray about tests, about what you are gaining in knowledge, and trust God that He will use all these things for His glory in your life.

Afraid to spread the Good News? By Christina V.

Afraid to spread the Good News?

By Christina V.

Some of us became Christians when we were much older and some of us have been raised in a Christian home and became a Christian when we were very small. It was the latter for me. I have been in church since I was a baby and got saved at age 7. I continued going to church throughout my teen years and never once thought it was a waste of time or wished I didn't go. I enjoyed going to church and learning about God and taking time to memorize His word. When I was 18, I moved out of state and my family and I were on a search for a new church to attend. I started going to a youth group during the middle of the week with some people I worked with and eventually started going to that church on Sundays as well. My parents weren't on board because they wanted me to continue going to church with them but eventually, they were okay with it and glad I was attending church. Up until then, all of my friends had always been Christians, but I was starting to hang out with non-Christians from work and it was a big change for me. I wasn't used to people cursing and feeling like it was okay to party and drink all the time. I didn't participate in what they were doing but I didn't like being around them because I thought that if I did, I'd start doing the things they were doing. I eventually stopped hanging out with them and got involved with other people who were Christians and was very glad I chose to do that. During all of this, I met this guy who was a strong Christian and yet, hung out with those people and didn't choose to stop. I shouldn't have, but I mentally judged him at the time because I thought what he was doing was wrong. How could someone as strong of a Christian as he was think that was okay? But here I am now, at age 25, and feel like I couldn't have been more wrong. This guy had a completely different mindset than I did. He would hang out with these people, but wouldn't get involved in the things they were doing. He would talk about Jesus and invite them to church. He loved on them like Jesus loves us. Jesus says in Mark 2:17 (HCSB) "….Those who are well don't need a doctor, but the sick do need one. I didn't come to call the righteous, but the sinners." Take a moment and think about scripture passages in the New Testament. Jesus was around sinners all the time. The majority of them that spent time with Him ended up believing in Him and changing their life around. I have no idea if the people this guy hung around ended up getting saved or not. But if anything, this guy helped plant a seed. These people saw something different in this guy than they saw in themselves and other people they hung around. But with me, they probably didn't notice anything different except for the fact that I no longer spent time with them. (Now, I do want to say that, as a Christian, hanging around non-believers can definitely be a bad influence. We need to remain strong in our faith so we aren't tempted to get involved in what they are doing, but rather be an example to them. )

I no longer spend time with only Christians. However, I do struggle with sharing God with non-believers. I'm trying to work on this. I don't hide my faith per say, but I don't call attention to it or try to share it with them. I hope and pray that in the future, I'll be more open with my faith. I know plenty of people, friends AND family, who don't know Jesus. I pray they will all come to know Him. Another friend of mine said something to the effect of "You (non-Christians) may think I'm crazy for believing in God, but if I'm wrong, so be it. If (they're) wrong, they'll burn in hell." Harsh, but true. In the end, when it all comes down to it, Christians will be with Jesus in heaven. Life on earth is such a short time compared to life in heaven. Why are we, as Christians, so afraid to spread the good news? If we're afraid that we'll lose a friend, we need to look at it with a different perspective. You may lose them as a friend on earth, but if there is a chance that they can accept Jesus before it's too late, wouldn’t that be so much better than them not accepting Jesus and going to hell for eternity? The least we can do as Christians is share our faith and pray for them. Then and only then can make that personal choice for themselves. Mark 16:15 (ESV) "And He said to them, "Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation."

Our Choices vs God's Choices, By Leah F.

Our Choices vs God's Choices

By Leah F.

You are playing outside, and your brother comes out, and says he wants to play with you. You start playing with him, but then he starts cheating. You are really mad, so you decide in your mind you will never play with him again. Later next week, you brother comes to you, and says he is sorry, and asks you if you want to play again.
(a) you stay mad at him, and you say "no." You then shut your door in his face.
(b) you say "yes," but hold an inside grudge.
(c) you forgive him and go play.
So what choice do you choose? You know which one is right, but do you go through with it? God's choice is always the right choice, but being the sinful humans we are, we tend to ignore it, and go with our own choice. If someone does you wrong, you don't want to risk him doing wrong to you again! But if God wants us to love our enemies, doesn't that imply that we should keep on loving our friends? Forgiveness is important. As it says in the Lord's Prayer, " ...forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors." God wants us to forgive. The bible also talks about how if we ask for forgiveness, God will forgive us, then forget our sin. If we ask for forgiveness, our sins don't matter anymore, and they don't count against us. But when we don't accept an apology, or we say we do, but we don't forget it, we are going against our God. Ephesians 4:32 says, " Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you." We need to forgive, your life will be better that way.
You are at school, and people are looking at you, and whispering. At first you don't think it is anything, but then through the rumors you hear your name. Later, you ask your friend what is going on, and she tells you that someone who doesn't like you is spreading rumors about you. You tell a teacher, and the girl is really mad at you. The teacher makes her apologize, and you can tell she doesn't mean it. But later, she comes and apologizes, saying that she was wrong. She also asks if you could be her friend. You can tell she means it this time.
You:
(a) say "no" then start spreading rumors about her
(b) say "it depends," and that if she wants to be your friend, she will have to prove she is worthy.
(c) say "yes" and bring her into your circle of friends.
Once again you know the right choice. Whenever someone does you wrong, you want to do wrong back, or show them how it feels. But God doesn't want that. Also, if someone apologizes, you should trust them. Yes, sometimes people will only apologize because an adult tells them to, but you can tell when they really mean it. But you might be wanting to know, what do you do if you can tell they don't mean it? This is a very hard question for some people. Do you just say, "You are not really sorry."? Do you just ignore them, you don't know what to say? What God probably wants us to do, is accept the apology. If you show them your Christian state, you can witness to them how we should act, even if they already are a Christian! But we know that God would want us to pray for them. You should pray that they would be truly sorry, and maybe they will come up and really apologize to you!
One more:
You are at your school. Everyone knows you are a Christian, but no one really cares. Then one day, you are at your desk reading a Bible, when someone comes up, and tells you that your religion is wrong, and you should stop reading, and give up Christ. You tell the kid "no," and he/she stalks off, angry. Soon, everyone seems to be spreading lies about Christianity. Not only is the kid spreading rumors about you, but also us bad-mouthing your religion, which also mean Jesus. After a couple weeks, the rumors seemed to stop. You see the kid who started it, who is acting different. Instead of telling you to stop reading your Bible, he or she asks you which story you were reading. Confused, you tell the kid, them leave. Later you hear from someone that the kid went to church, and is now a Christian. Later, the kid comes up to you and tells you that he is now a Christian. Can it be true?
You:
(a) tell the kid, "no, that isn't possible." Then leave
(b) ask him some really challenging Bible questions, and if he/she gets one wrong, you say he isn't a Christian.
(c) You thank God, then forgive him for what he did.
You know which choice is right, but do you do it? God's way is the right way. So don't let your way win the match.

The Impact of Believers Actively Following God By Joy Wie-Addo

The Impact of Believers Actively Following God

By Joy Wie-Addo

Imagine that the world was made up of 80 percent believers and just 20 percent unbelievers. Imagine that the evil one would only have about 5 percent to use against the 80 percent, because we would have about some people who will change one day. What the 80 percent do is really going to effect the 20 percent! This is especially true for those who are undecided and even those who go to church but don't actually believe in God yet.
Of course, we don't actually know how many believers there are in the world, even though we can count how many people say they believe; only God knows who truly trusts Him and obeys and loves Him. But, the principle is the same - imagine what we can do, as believers, to testify about what God has done in our lives, and imagine what a great effect this can have!
Now the Bible says if you come to Christ, you are a new creature. Again, it says that as soon as you accept God as your Lord and savior he comes to live in you - see Acts 16:31 and 1 Corinthians 3:16.
The Bible also says and after that we are no more under the bondage of sin or any law for we have been made righteous with Christ - read Romans 6 to see this.
1 Peter 2:9 explains further, "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."
Now take this into consideration - if you are God's and coming together, with one motive, vision and understanding, nothing can bring you down. It means not even the devil can, because it is God Himself, the Almighty, the Supreme, the Great "I am that I am," the Elohim, the devil wants to bring down - Which is not possible, because, you know what? About 2013 years ago when Christ Jesus was nailed on the cross of calvary, He defeated Satan.
Ones upon a time, in the Bible, when the people were building a tower and they had one mind and one agenda, God said, these people are so united (but to do something bad), and so I will split them. (See Genesis 11.)
If we can be like those people, even as small as we may number, we can do wonders for God's glory. When He was just one man on the cross, He defeated sin and death. Considering these are defeated, what excuse do we have in not living for Him, as the people who experience the kindness of Jesus' love? We are the mantels of his death and testimonies of His love.
He is who he is, and nothing can change Him.

Become a Campus Missionary! By Caitlin S.

Become a Campus Missionary!

By Caitlin S.

Has anyone ever told you that your school campus is a mission field? Or that you are the missionary that your friends and classmates need? The public school campus is the most strategic mission field in the United States, because 90% of our population passes through the public school system at some point.
Even if you go to school in another country or go to private school, this is still the place where you spend the most time with people who you can impact! Some basic commitments that are important if you want to be a missionary to your campus are:

Pray - Pray for your school, administrators, teachers and students every day.
Live - Live out your personal relationship with Jesus in your actions and interactions with others.
Tell - Tell your salvation story and what God has done for you when opportunities arise.
Serve - Serve your campus in anyway possible.
Give - Give or your time, talent, or finances to make s difference in the lives of fellow students.

Their are all kinds of simple ways to do some of these things; wear Christian t-shirts to school, do a school project on a biblical topic, carry your Bible at school, pray over your food at lunch, pick up someone's book they dropped in the hallway, pick up trash when you see it on the ground. Volunteer to help with school events or projects. Its very simple to impact someone's life and you may be the only Bible they ever read, so step up and step out!

What if my school doesn't allow some of these things?
You have the right to do any of the things I have mentioned above while at school during non-instructional time, as well as to be able to have a Christian or Bible club at school, and so much more!

I want to be a missionary to my campus - but how?
You are already a missionary to your campus just by living out your faith at school. If you would like to sign up officially you can do so at Campusmissionary.com and there are also a ton of free resources for you available there. Signing up there will also give you the option of getting information about training and even more resources available to you. I will be writing more articles and stories about campus missions, but if you have any questions or would like more information just email godlygirls@yahoo.com and put "Campus Missions" in the subject and I will be glad to get those from the staff and answer them for you. You can make a difference, and I believe in you!

“Look at the nations and watch and be utterly amazed, for I am going to do a work in your day you would not believe even if you were told” Habakkuk 1:5 (I stood on this verse as a campus missionary and saw God do some awesome things at my school!)

Witness to Others, By Sarah P.

Witness to Others

By Sarah P.

"Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For a time will come when they will not endure sound teaching, but according to their own desires, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables."

~2 Timothy 4:2-4~

Let's look at what these verses mean. The first three sentences are about witnessing to others. "Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching." We all need to work more in this area. When a person gets scared or nervous about sharing Jesus, they miss a chance to bring another soul to God. Who knows? Maybe you are someone's last hope of getting saved. Will you let your fear stop you? Look at the rest of the Bible passage. "For a time will come when they will not endure sound teaching, but according to their own desires, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables." This tells us how, as time goes on, people will accept the truth less and less. Instead, they invent their own religions that make them feel proud of themselves. Very soon, it could be too late. Those people will get wrapped up in their own lies, and refuse the gospel of Jesus Christ. Innocent people can fall into these lies. Next time you have a chance, witness to someone. Tell them about Jesus before it's too late. Don't let your fear stop you. Instead, preach the word!