Where Did All the Jonah's Come From?

In the past I talked a little about men and women after God’s own heart: David’s and Mary’s. Today I will talk about another person- Jonah. Did you notice how our world is full of Jonahs? What do I mean by that? Well think about Jonah of the Old Testament. God told him to do something, and he ran away. He even hid. Later we see examples of his selfishness and self-centeredness. A far cry from the man who tried to follow God with his entire heart and being. So did you notice how so many young people these days are being raised to be Jonah’s? We continue to see young people who are selfish, self-centered, and running from God. So many young people are falling away from their faith and the church. So many of them are becoming Jonah’s. What can we do about this? First, we must make a commitment to never become a Jonah. We must strive to be a Mary or a David. We must make it our goal to follow God with our hearts, minds, and souls, even when it’s hard or inconvenient. We must be godly examples to other young people in our lives. Secondly, we must purpose to raise godly children. We must realize that we need to someday teach our children to be Mary’s and David’s. We must help them realize that their life is about serving God, not serving themselves. Then maybe we can rid the world of the Jonah’s. 

~Brooke

Do Not Be Unequally Yoked

“Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: ‘I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.

‘Therefore come out from them and be separate,’ says the Lord.

‘Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you. I will be a father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters,’ says the Lord Almighty.

“Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.” – 2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1

“Do not be yoked together with unbelievers.” How many Christians have broken this very commandment? Notice this is not a suggestion, but a commandment. When God said, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” we take that as a commandment. So why do we treat this as a suggestion? God does not give us suggestions; He gives us commandments.

He gave us this commandment to keep us pure and to make life easier for us. I have seen the torture and struggle that comes from being unequally yoked. God doesn’t want us to have to go through that. He also wants us to be pure. In the Old Testament times, He did not want his people to marry the unbelievers, and at times even sent plagues when they disobeyed this law. (Numbers 25:1-13) The Lord did not want anyone to take His children away from Him. He knew if the Israelites married unbelievers, they would soon be worshipping other gods. And that is exactly what happened. Why do we think it would be any different for us? Do we think we are that much smarter and wiser than the Israelites, that we can intimately associate with unbelievers and not be pulled away after other gods? Are we that more righteous than they were? The answer, dear friend, is no.

As a side note, I believe this Scripture also applies to friendships. If we constantly intimately associate ourselves with unbelieving friends, we soon find ourselves being pulled in the wrong direction (1 Corinthians 15:33-34). Yes, we need to have some unbelieving friends so that we may reach out to them and show them the Good News of Christ. But they do not need to be our most intimate friends. We should seek out intimate friendships with fellow believers, that we may be edified (Proverbs 27:17).

So dear friends, let us all save ourselves the trouble, let us learn from the Israelites’ mistakes, let us follow God’s commandment to be not unequally yoked. It is His will for us.

~Brooke

A Woman After God's Own Heart

David was called “a man after God’s own heart.” Isn’t that amazing? Imagine being called a person after God’s own heart. How humbling that would be. So we all think of David being a man after God’s own heart, and that got me thinking. What about a woman after God’s heart? Now I know that there is never a woman in the Bible who is actually called this, but if there was I think it would be Mary, the mother of Jesus. Consider her reaction when she was told she would bear the Saviour of the world: “Mary said to the angel, ‘How can this be, since I am a virgin?’ the angel answered and said to her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God…’ And Mary said, ‘Behold, the bond-slave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.’”- Luke 1:34-38

Though Mary didn’t really understand how the things the angel told her could be, she realized that God was in control. She willing put herself into His will and plan- “May it be done to me according to your word.” I think Mary’s faith and selflessness makes her a woman after God’s own heart. I hope that I can follow her example and also be a woman after God’s own heart. 

Interview with Brooke

This is a repost from Becoming Abigail, written by my dear friend Tahirarh. She asked some very hard questions, but I had a lot of fun!!

The Long Awaited Interview with Miss Brooke is here!!! Brooke is truly an exceptional young woman. Her love for God is palpable and she is an inspiration to me and my family. Enjoy!

1. How have you enjoyed homeschooling?

I have immensely enjoyed homeschooling; I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. :)

2. Would you homeschool your children if you have any?

Absolutely! I plan on homeschooling any and all future children that I have.

3. What are the common negative comments you get about homeschooling?

I believe the most common comments that I have heard, either personally or from other homeschooling families, are: homeschoolers are not socialized, homeschoolers wouldn’t get an opportunity to play sports, and that homeschoolers are sheltered.

4. What are your responses to these comments?

First, most of the homeschoolers I know are very well socialized. They are especially good at communicating and socializing with people who are not their age. Many public school kids make lots of friends their own age, but many homeschooler befriend people outside of their own age range. For myself, I know many of my friends have been two or more years younger than me, and as much as 18 years older than me.

In regards to sports, homeschoolers have just as much opportunity to play as public schoolers. I have been involved in martial arts since I was 12 and am currently a black belt, my brother does tumbling and trampolining; I know homeschoolers who played soccer, basketball, baseball, wrestling, football, swimming, etc. I even know a homeschooler who was the Iowa Gymnastic State Champion.

As a matter of fact, homeschoolers are sheltered. But they are sheltered from the negative influences of the world. So it is not a sheltering that anyone should fear. :)

5. Why did you decide to be a stay-at-home-daughter?

I started reading some blogs about SAHDs. Everything I read made a lot of sense, and was backed up by scriptures. As I was already planning on living at home for some time after graduation, it wasn’t too big of a stretch to a SAHD. Most of the things I read really made sense, both physically and spiritually, and I felt convicted to be a stay at home daughter. For me, I believe it is the right thing to do.

6. How do you plan to fill your days as a SAHD?

Well, I am currently attending an online school, so I plan to graduate from that. I plan to work from home part-time as a medical transcriptionist; I plan to teach piano lessons; I plan to write, because I dream of being a writer, and possibly publish some of my work; and I plan to work on homemaking skills to prepare for having my own family someday.

7. Why have you chosen courtship as a way to get to know a suitor?

With 50% of all marriages in this country, yes even Christian ones, ending in divorce, something must be done. I believe courtship is that something. I believe the traditional dating relationships are not working. Courtship is a way to get to know a suitor without becoming too invested emotionally; it enables you to continue to guard your heart, something that is harder to do in a dating relationship.

8. Why have you chosen to save your first kiss for marriage?

I have chosen to save my first kiss for marriage, and that is a personal commitment. Not all may feel led to do this, but I feel that I have. Someday when I get married, I want to be able to present myself to my husband and say, “Here I am. I’ve never given myself to another, not even in the smallest way. I have saved myself for you.” How special will it be to have my first kiss, first time to hold hands, etc., with the man that I marry?

9. How does the word of God inform your decision to save your first kiss for marriage?

God’s word speaks many times about purity. Purity is important to God. Marriages are also important to God. His word tells us to treat young men as brothers in the Lord. I believe that by saving my first kiss until my wedding day, it is a way that I can take purity seriously, help my marriage to start off well, and treat other young men I may meet in a pure way.

10. Have you endured persecution for your choices?

Wow. I think I could write an entire blog post on this question alone. I’ll try not to though. ;) Yes, I have endured persecution for my choices. As early as 14 years old, I was struggling with this persecution. My best friend abandoned me, two other girls ignored and excluded me. Outings were planned and I was deliberately not invited. All because I was homeschooled, and so I was “different.” Several years later, one of the same girls came back into my life. I thought perhaps things would be different, but I was again eventually pushed away. A young woman that I respected deleted our Facebook friendship, left argumentative comments on this blog, and in other ways hurt me, simply because I had chosen to state what I believed in about purity, courtship, etc. Our relationship was basically ruined, and I never said a negative word to her. And friends, these examples were all within the church! Because of these things, I have struggled with acceptance and rejection.

Sadly, I have even see this translate over to the blogging world. I have to continually be sure that I write what I believe and feel, even if some people might not agree. That is part of what inspired me to write “I Don’t Fit in a Box.” I wanted people to know who I really am, and not look at me as something I’m not. That’s another goal I have with my new blog, True Love’s Kiss. My goal is to write as truly and honestly as I possibly can. To be “real” with my readers. Rejection will probably come, but hopefully some people will see my honesty and accept me for that.

11. What gives you hope to live faithfully through this life?

My hope is in Christ, and the eternal salvation that He has promised. I wait on Him.

12. If you could give other young women or girls advice on how to wait on God, what advice would that be?

Pray. Just pray, a lot. I’m telling this to myself as well. It can be very hard to wait, but in the end it will be worth it. God has a Master Plan. We just need to trust him with that. If we are willing to wait for God’s best, I know in the end we will all feel completely overwhelmed that he works everything out so perfectly. Find other like-minded young women who are also waiting. Wait together, encourage each other. Find an older woman who has “been there, done that” to encourage you. Read scriptures about waiting. Read books written by other young women about waiting. Above all, realize this, your life is not about getting married, having children, or whatever else you are waiting for. Your life is about serving God, in whatever way he calls you to do that.