I feel as though when it comes to by quiet times, I retain more when I "research", or in other words, go by a theme. Something that I have questions about. I spend time looking through my concordance, or searching via internet. Sometimes I just need a refresher to clarify some things, so I know of the references already.
So lately, I've been really thinking a lot about Sin.
The dictionary definition of Sin is transgression of divine law, ANY act regarded as such a transgression, especially a willful or deliberate violation of some religious or moral principle.
In simpler terms, Sin is anything that separates us from Christ. Something that goes against the guidelines that He has established.
So, what are some things that are against God's guidelines? Let's use the Ten Commandments for example.
1. Have no other gods before me
2. You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below (idolatry, which ultimately can be anything that we put before Christ)
3. You shall not misuse the name of the Lord (any form of oh my God, Jesus!, you get the idea)
4. Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy (I'm not really clear as to when the Sabbath is supposed to be in the day of the week. But it is a day of rest. Do you take a day out of the week to rest?)
5. Honor your father and mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you. (self explanatory)
6. You shall not murder (later on, the Bible says that if you hate someone, you are already held guilty of their murder)
7. You shall not commit adultery (the Bible also says that if you even look at a women (or man) with lust in your heart, you are already guilty of committing adultery)
8. You shall not steal
9. You shall not lie
10. You shall not covet.
These are just ten, but they are the ones that are most commonly used, that we really don't even think about. I'll come back to this later.
Within the past week or so, North Carolina established a rule that homosexuals cannot get married. I'm not entirely sure of the full details, but I know enough that it created an interesting state of controversy. The next day, President Obama spoke on his support for homosexuality and that it was a generational thing. That it is considered offensive at the time, but later on it would evolve into acceptance. That made a LOT of people angry, well, Christians. Ever since then, people have been posting statuses, videos, blogs, commenting on posts, stating about how wrong it was. I have a friend that is homosexual, and he has had people come up to him saying that he was going to go to hell for being gay and the like.
The way that I have seen Christians respond to this situation has made me rather... angry.
Why was I angry? Because things like this pulls people away. I had to be intentional in pursuing relationships with people that do not fully have a relationship with Christ, and this frequently come up. Statistically, 66% of people that leave a church (or church in general) is because of an offense. Now some portion it can be a misguiding, people have not fully understood what it is like to be given into complete submission under God, but at the same time, offenses can come from people in the church that are literally being flat out rude. Those that justify their own sin and make it seem as though someone else's sin is magnitudes worse.
We are taught in church, Romans 3:23, "All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God" and Romans 3:10 "There is none righteous, no, not one". However, we treat certain issues as though we are better because we haven't done "that" thing. But in turn, we are committing sin at that very moment. The sin that can send us directly to hell. As we go back to the ten commandments. I cannot say that there is a single person who have not violated any one of the ten commandments more than once. I can probably say that idolatry is the most common. We ALL have things that we have put before God at one point or another. Even now. Then there's the issue of Pride... which EVERYONE deals with regularly. The root of every other sin is a pride issue.
We tend to go on and on about how there is no level of sin. The wages of sin (period) is death. We ALL deserve Hell. So why do we treat sins like fornication, abortion, homosexuality, and murder differently from sins like lying, lust, pride, gossip, and talking badly about someone? As though we have a "right" to commit those sins because we think that they don't hurt anyone? Is that really true? Every sin issue that we have today started from a lie. Many families are broken because of lusts. Statistically, more people are affected by what we consider the "little" sins than the ones that we take to be so "bad". So why do we fight against abortion and homosexuality so much?
I thought about this not because I feel as though abortion and homosexuality should be something that we take lightly. I wrote this because, we have to take our sin, just as seriously. I want to get to the point in my life where every lie that I happen to say tears me apart. When I lust, I want to feel guilty. When I gossip, I want to plead for forgiveness. There is no such thing as big sins or little sins. I think we have to start acting like it.
-Quayla
Monday, May 21, 2012
Friday, May 18, 2012
Friendships
I've begun to learn the balance and standards of justifying certain aspects of life...
This sounds a bit weird to start a blog off.. I'll come back to that later.
I was talking to my mom about how there are people that are called to impact certain types of people. Those to reel in the people who know better, and are doing wrong. Then the people that help with the healing process of people that literally don't know better. The people that are saved and have fallen and then the people that have fallen, but literally never knew anything else to be better. Honestly, I think that everyone should be able to learn how to impact both types of people. But of course, there are some people that just somehow specializes with impacting a specific group.
Sometimes, I think that people forget that we are not here on this earth to only impact a single group of people. At first, I was accustomed to think that we are only supposed to hang out with people that are like us. I think growing up, I thought that I should only have Christian friends. Then later, it turned into being, "I should help my Christian friends becoming stronger in Christ, or hang out with other Christian friends that help me to grow closer in my relationship with God. You know, Iron Sharpens Iron, right?"
I honestly, did not really know that way of thinking was a problem...until I took an Evangelism class this school year. At the end of the course, we were assigned to write a paper on an Evangelism encounter that we've had with someone. I sat there thinking about the assignment and thought... I don't have a single friend that is unsaved. In a way that is kind of good, I guess. Let's say, if they were once unsaved and I helped them come to Christ.
But that wasn't the case. The reason why I never had any friends that were unsaved is because I was never took the opportunity to befriend someone that wasn't saved. I've played sports with girls that were unsaved, but I never pursued a relationship with them. I kind of pulled away from people I "considered" to be bad influences.
I've noticed that people have even specified not to bring people that weren't saved or were of a certain level spiritually to private social gatherings. I don't really understand the significance of that. Especially when you say that it is important to take the opportunity that you can to witness. It's kind of like saying that you don't want anything to do with them at all. I've seen where people have looked at or talked about people that lived a certain way. I've done it before. But looking back and then seeing now how prominent it actually is, really hurts. If we limit ourselves to being only among people that are saved, how are we going to impact this world? God doesn't say "Sit in the church and wait for someone that is unsaved to come so you can minister to him" He says "Go into the world and minister the gospel to every creature".
In my evangelism class, we had to do research and write a paper on the methods of evangelism and which methods we thought were the most effective. I spent a couple of hours looking through the methods and came across friendship evangelism. Studies show that this is the most effective method. Its self explanatory, but its basically the process of being someone's friend and leading them to Christ in that process. It does take boldness... because sometimes you want to do the "cool" thing. But ultimately, when you take the time to know who someone is, what they believe, they are more inclined to do the same for you. Which opens the door for them to come to Christ.
It may take longer for someone to come to Christ, but your patience with them will go a long way.
I'm not saying that... a person needs to not have saved friends. Actually, it is really important for you to have friends that are there to help you grow stronger in Christ. It is actually more important for you to have more friends that are living for Christ, than those that are not. You need that form of positive influence to keep you growing so that you can be there for those that are not saved. I do feel as though that as a child, it is important for the social aspect of things to be heavily controlled. I feel as though it depends on the influential level of the child. It's a discretion thing.
That's where the justifying things come in... your unsaved friends, don't have the same morals that you do. Sometimes even you have friends that are saved, but just don't know or understand better. You will feel like you're constantly monitoring what they say and do.. it does seem kind of odd, especially when people look at it from the outside... "why are they friends with that person?" For me, I know people think that. I have to juggle between my fb making sure languages are positive.. but in the end, I'm taking the initiative to get past that barrier with others. To lead them in the right direction.. to open the door for them to feel free to confide in me, but also take heed for the advice that I give. It is definitely tough, because I do have to make sure that I'm constantly being fed with positivity. But in the end, seeing that someone is closer to God now than what they were before, because I allowed God to use me, makes everything worth it.
A person would rarely take the advice of a total stranger. It comes off rude if you barely know someone and you just up and tell them that they need to get better. Or that they're going to suffer if they don't change their ways. If you take time to get to know who they are, you begin to see why they are that way. Once they are comfortable enough to share with you, they are willing to take heed of the things that you say to them. It does take time, but they do get better. Let God use you as a vessel. Continue to get people to help you grow... but also be that person to help someone else grow.
I think that's all my thoughts in a nutshell. I could go on, but its getting late.
-Quayla
This sounds a bit weird to start a blog off.. I'll come back to that later.
I was talking to my mom about how there are people that are called to impact certain types of people. Those to reel in the people who know better, and are doing wrong. Then the people that help with the healing process of people that literally don't know better. The people that are saved and have fallen and then the people that have fallen, but literally never knew anything else to be better. Honestly, I think that everyone should be able to learn how to impact both types of people. But of course, there are some people that just somehow specializes with impacting a specific group.
Sometimes, I think that people forget that we are not here on this earth to only impact a single group of people. At first, I was accustomed to think that we are only supposed to hang out with people that are like us. I think growing up, I thought that I should only have Christian friends. Then later, it turned into being, "I should help my Christian friends becoming stronger in Christ, or hang out with other Christian friends that help me to grow closer in my relationship with God. You know, Iron Sharpens Iron, right?"
I honestly, did not really know that way of thinking was a problem...until I took an Evangelism class this school year. At the end of the course, we were assigned to write a paper on an Evangelism encounter that we've had with someone. I sat there thinking about the assignment and thought... I don't have a single friend that is unsaved. In a way that is kind of good, I guess. Let's say, if they were once unsaved and I helped them come to Christ.
But that wasn't the case. The reason why I never had any friends that were unsaved is because I was never took the opportunity to befriend someone that wasn't saved. I've played sports with girls that were unsaved, but I never pursued a relationship with them. I kind of pulled away from people I "considered" to be bad influences.
I've noticed that people have even specified not to bring people that weren't saved or were of a certain level spiritually to private social gatherings. I don't really understand the significance of that. Especially when you say that it is important to take the opportunity that you can to witness. It's kind of like saying that you don't want anything to do with them at all. I've seen where people have looked at or talked about people that lived a certain way. I've done it before. But looking back and then seeing now how prominent it actually is, really hurts. If we limit ourselves to being only among people that are saved, how are we going to impact this world? God doesn't say "Sit in the church and wait for someone that is unsaved to come so you can minister to him" He says "Go into the world and minister the gospel to every creature".
In my evangelism class, we had to do research and write a paper on the methods of evangelism and which methods we thought were the most effective. I spent a couple of hours looking through the methods and came across friendship evangelism. Studies show that this is the most effective method. Its self explanatory, but its basically the process of being someone's friend and leading them to Christ in that process. It does take boldness... because sometimes you want to do the "cool" thing. But ultimately, when you take the time to know who someone is, what they believe, they are more inclined to do the same for you. Which opens the door for them to come to Christ.
It may take longer for someone to come to Christ, but your patience with them will go a long way.
I'm not saying that... a person needs to not have saved friends. Actually, it is really important for you to have friends that are there to help you grow stronger in Christ. It is actually more important for you to have more friends that are living for Christ, than those that are not. You need that form of positive influence to keep you growing so that you can be there for those that are not saved. I do feel as though that as a child, it is important for the social aspect of things to be heavily controlled. I feel as though it depends on the influential level of the child. It's a discretion thing.
That's where the justifying things come in... your unsaved friends, don't have the same morals that you do. Sometimes even you have friends that are saved, but just don't know or understand better. You will feel like you're constantly monitoring what they say and do.. it does seem kind of odd, especially when people look at it from the outside... "why are they friends with that person?" For me, I know people think that. I have to juggle between my fb making sure languages are positive.. but in the end, I'm taking the initiative to get past that barrier with others. To lead them in the right direction.. to open the door for them to feel free to confide in me, but also take heed for the advice that I give. It is definitely tough, because I do have to make sure that I'm constantly being fed with positivity. But in the end, seeing that someone is closer to God now than what they were before, because I allowed God to use me, makes everything worth it.
A person would rarely take the advice of a total stranger. It comes off rude if you barely know someone and you just up and tell them that they need to get better. Or that they're going to suffer if they don't change their ways. If you take time to get to know who they are, you begin to see why they are that way. Once they are comfortable enough to share with you, they are willing to take heed of the things that you say to them. It does take time, but they do get better. Let God use you as a vessel. Continue to get people to help you grow... but also be that person to help someone else grow.
I think that's all my thoughts in a nutshell. I could go on, but its getting late.
-Quayla
Monday, May 14, 2012
Book One Completion: The Hunger Games
So I think that after every book that I complete this Summer, I'm going to post a blog about it. Basically giving details of what the book was about as well as what I thought about it. I think this will be a good idea as far as helping me retain what I read, and also some of the books I actually have to write a brief essay about, so writing as I go will definitely help me.
The first book that I completed was the Hunger Games.
I decided to read this one first because for one, everyone was telling me that I should read it.. and two, I wanted to give my brain a chance to relax. Nothing school related. Well anyways, I read the Hunger Games in four days. I must say, that was the quickest that I have read a book of that size (400 pgs) in a LONG time. I really got lost in the book. I never even heard about the Hunger Games until the movie came out a couple of months ago. It came out of nowhere. People were talking about it and I was like... the Hunger Games? Does this have something to do with food? Ha. So after asking around, I've found out that the Hunger Games is pretty much about 24 children from the ages of 12-18, being randomly selected for a format of a deathly (roman-style I would assume) games. It's basically like the survival of the fittest of the children of 12 districts. One boy and one girl from each district. The 24 children are basically placed into an arena and they have to kill each other. The last man standing wins.
The concept in itself is just a tad weird. "A story about children killing each other". But for some reason, I really enjoy story lines that has something to do with murder, mysteries, etc. I have to say, honestly, I was a little skeptical about the children thing. But then I was like, hey I can just pretend that they aren't kids or something. ha. But when you actually read the book, you do somehow forget that they are kids. It is in first person (which I like). The character, Katniss definitely had the maturity of an adult. At 16, Katniss had a numerous amount of adult responsibilities which made it a lot easier for me to have the perception that she was an Adult. The measure of her care about things was great.
The book did pull me in emotionally, however. It was crazy. Especially because I had so many people give me so many details about the book. I knew that Katniss was going to win. Then my sister, Janay, told me that the other boy from her district, Peeta was able to become a "winner" too. The Gamemakers of the Hunger Games changed the rules so that there could be two winners. Although I knew that stuff, I was still able to be shocked and surprised of the events of the book. How it happened, and when they happened. The book never got boring.
The thing about the book which I greatly admired is the fact that it kept me wanting to know more. The story didn't just end. It ended with me having some many unanswered questions that I can only find the answer to by reading the other books in the series. Like Katniss' and Peeta's relationship. Where does it go? During the Hunger Games, Katniss believed that her and Peeta were supposed to have a "staged" love story as a form of rebellion to owners of the Districts, (The Capitol). Katniss was told by her advisors to continue this on. She believed that Peeta's emotional act was staged too. The only thing was that, Peeta's acts were genuine for her. The misunderstanding didn't surface until the very end of the book. I got so hooked that I currently feel as though I NEED to get my hands on the other books. The library has them on hold. There are 146 holds on those books. It's CRAZY. Ha but it's SO good that I understand why so many people would want to read them.
I feel as though the details that I could give of the book would require me literally writing a blog post so long that no one would even think about reading it. But I was so into this book and excited about it that I can't even imagine how upset I would be when I finish reading the series. Hopefully I can get my hands on them this Summer.
-Quayla
The first book that I completed was the Hunger Games.
I decided to read this one first because for one, everyone was telling me that I should read it.. and two, I wanted to give my brain a chance to relax. Nothing school related. Well anyways, I read the Hunger Games in four days. I must say, that was the quickest that I have read a book of that size (400 pgs) in a LONG time. I really got lost in the book. I never even heard about the Hunger Games until the movie came out a couple of months ago. It came out of nowhere. People were talking about it and I was like... the Hunger Games? Does this have something to do with food? Ha. So after asking around, I've found out that the Hunger Games is pretty much about 24 children from the ages of 12-18, being randomly selected for a format of a deathly (roman-style I would assume) games. It's basically like the survival of the fittest of the children of 12 districts. One boy and one girl from each district. The 24 children are basically placed into an arena and they have to kill each other. The last man standing wins.
The concept in itself is just a tad weird. "A story about children killing each other". But for some reason, I really enjoy story lines that has something to do with murder, mysteries, etc. I have to say, honestly, I was a little skeptical about the children thing. But then I was like, hey I can just pretend that they aren't kids or something. ha. But when you actually read the book, you do somehow forget that they are kids. It is in first person (which I like). The character, Katniss definitely had the maturity of an adult. At 16, Katniss had a numerous amount of adult responsibilities which made it a lot easier for me to have the perception that she was an Adult. The measure of her care about things was great.
The book did pull me in emotionally, however. It was crazy. Especially because I had so many people give me so many details about the book. I knew that Katniss was going to win. Then my sister, Janay, told me that the other boy from her district, Peeta was able to become a "winner" too. The Gamemakers of the Hunger Games changed the rules so that there could be two winners. Although I knew that stuff, I was still able to be shocked and surprised of the events of the book. How it happened, and when they happened. The book never got boring.
The thing about the book which I greatly admired is the fact that it kept me wanting to know more. The story didn't just end. It ended with me having some many unanswered questions that I can only find the answer to by reading the other books in the series. Like Katniss' and Peeta's relationship. Where does it go? During the Hunger Games, Katniss believed that her and Peeta were supposed to have a "staged" love story as a form of rebellion to owners of the Districts, (The Capitol). Katniss was told by her advisors to continue this on. She believed that Peeta's emotional act was staged too. The only thing was that, Peeta's acts were genuine for her. The misunderstanding didn't surface until the very end of the book. I got so hooked that I currently feel as though I NEED to get my hands on the other books. The library has them on hold. There are 146 holds on those books. It's CRAZY. Ha but it's SO good that I understand why so many people would want to read them.
I feel as though the details that I could give of the book would require me literally writing a blog post so long that no one would even think about reading it. But I was so into this book and excited about it that I can't even imagine how upset I would be when I finish reading the series. Hopefully I can get my hands on them this Summer.
-Quayla
Saturday, May 12, 2012
Two years.. Graduate school... MBA???
I feel as though after I have gone through the excitement of having so many of my friends/associates/classmates graduate today, it makes me really reflect that two years from now, it will be me. There was a time when two years simply seemed like forever, but it actually isn't. I actually thought about how it was two years ago that I graduated from High School. It happened SO fast.
I mean, I have juggled back and forth with the idea of graduating next year. Which is possible, however, I opted to just add another major and a minor. I mean, I can possibly drop the minor if it gets too hectic, but in the meantime, I'm going to graduate in 2014 with the class that I came to Liberty with. It should be very interesting, I must say. Well, I have always thought about what I'm going to do for grad school. It's been pretty tough, because I went for the longest time saying that I was not going to be at Liberty for grad school. But looking at what they have to offer and the position that I am in, there is no reason why I shouldn't consider it. They don't require a GRE (which is weird...) But I'm 100% POSITIVE that I will get in. Someone threw the idea out to me that as having a Communications Undergrad, it's probably better to get an MBA. I didn't think about that much at all, but I do know that Liberty has an exceptional MBA program. So I looked through it and saw that they offer something specific, a MBA in Public Relations. I feel as though as I'm getting more into my classes, although I absolutely LOVE Broadcasting, I feel more of a pull to the benefits of Public Relations. It's SO weird. But I think I may actually consider it. I am definitely going to look around some more. So far, VCU and Syracuse have been options. But for some reason, I have not really found that place where I really feel peace about.
Ha I have no idea what God wants me to do with my education fully yet... but I feel as though I'm somehow getting closer and closer as I go. But that is all I wanted to say at the moment...
Oh wait! I want to talk about something else... but I will put it into a blog post.
I mean, I have juggled back and forth with the idea of graduating next year. Which is possible, however, I opted to just add another major and a minor. I mean, I can possibly drop the minor if it gets too hectic, but in the meantime, I'm going to graduate in 2014 with the class that I came to Liberty with. It should be very interesting, I must say. Well, I have always thought about what I'm going to do for grad school. It's been pretty tough, because I went for the longest time saying that I was not going to be at Liberty for grad school. But looking at what they have to offer and the position that I am in, there is no reason why I shouldn't consider it. They don't require a GRE (which is weird...) But I'm 100% POSITIVE that I will get in. Someone threw the idea out to me that as having a Communications Undergrad, it's probably better to get an MBA. I didn't think about that much at all, but I do know that Liberty has an exceptional MBA program. So I looked through it and saw that they offer something specific, a MBA in Public Relations. I feel as though as I'm getting more into my classes, although I absolutely LOVE Broadcasting, I feel more of a pull to the benefits of Public Relations. It's SO weird. But I think I may actually consider it. I am definitely going to look around some more. So far, VCU and Syracuse have been options. But for some reason, I have not really found that place where I really feel peace about.
Ha I have no idea what God wants me to do with my education fully yet... but I feel as though I'm somehow getting closer and closer as I go. But that is all I wanted to say at the moment...
Oh wait! I want to talk about something else... but I will put it into a blog post.
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Liberty University-School Pride
I came to Liberty University with the desire of being a Sports Journalist. After attending classes and the many workshops offered at Liberty, I have come to learn that I would love to one day do Public Relations for a sports company or even an individual athlete.
It was only through Liberty that I became informed of the transformation of the media. I came to learn that as I go to pursue a career in Public Relations, people will be more inclined to hire me if I utilize all the resources that are available to me. A company will be more attracted to me if I can not only write well or produce an excellent campaign. They will be more attracted to me if I can design a brochure, an identity package, and can successfully shoot and edit video that can represent their company well. If I did not attend Liberty, I would not have known that piece of valuable information. Because of this, I decided to double major in Public Relations and Broadcasting.
I have had the opportunity to be taught by professors who have gained years of valuable experience related to my majors. I am not being taught by someone who has "book knowledge" but someone who has actually gone out there and done well in the field that I'm pursuing. One professor has been a Broadcast Journalist for about 30 years and had the opportunity to cover a Super Bowl and the NBA Finals. He has interviewed athletes such as Dennis Rodman. As someone who is pursuing a career in sports, I find that very exciting. Another professor was actually part of the AD/PR team in the corporate of Steve Madden. What these professors are teaching me is valuable because they have seen and done everything that works and doesn't work.
Liberty University also requires us to gain hands-on experience in order for us to even graduate. This includes practicums and Internships. Because those are requirements, I have had the opportunity to gain journalism experience while writing for the Student Newspaper and learn about create Sweepers and News Packages for radio. I will be leaving Liberty University having completed Two Internships. I will know how to create and edit a short film and I will know how to create and design just about anything related to Brochures or Identity packages.
While Liberty University is a Christian Institution, we have moral standards. Through this, I have learned the value of leadership and have the opportunity to become a Resident Assistant. Being a RA at Liberty holds a lot more responsibility than almost any other school in the country. I know that once I complete my time as being an RA, I will have developed a great skill set that will compliment my career experience. This scholarship is sponsored by CenturyLinkQuote.com.
It was only through Liberty that I became informed of the transformation of the media. I came to learn that as I go to pursue a career in Public Relations, people will be more inclined to hire me if I utilize all the resources that are available to me. A company will be more attracted to me if I can not only write well or produce an excellent campaign. They will be more attracted to me if I can design a brochure, an identity package, and can successfully shoot and edit video that can represent their company well. If I did not attend Liberty, I would not have known that piece of valuable information. Because of this, I decided to double major in Public Relations and Broadcasting.
I have had the opportunity to be taught by professors who have gained years of valuable experience related to my majors. I am not being taught by someone who has "book knowledge" but someone who has actually gone out there and done well in the field that I'm pursuing. One professor has been a Broadcast Journalist for about 30 years and had the opportunity to cover a Super Bowl and the NBA Finals. He has interviewed athletes such as Dennis Rodman. As someone who is pursuing a career in sports, I find that very exciting. Another professor was actually part of the AD/PR team in the corporate of Steve Madden. What these professors are teaching me is valuable because they have seen and done everything that works and doesn't work.
Liberty University also requires us to gain hands-on experience in order for us to even graduate. This includes practicums and Internships. Because those are requirements, I have had the opportunity to gain journalism experience while writing for the Student Newspaper and learn about create Sweepers and News Packages for radio. I will be leaving Liberty University having completed Two Internships. I will know how to create and edit a short film and I will know how to create and design just about anything related to Brochures or Identity packages.
While Liberty University is a Christian Institution, we have moral standards. Through this, I have learned the value of leadership and have the opportunity to become a Resident Assistant. Being a RA at Liberty holds a lot more responsibility than almost any other school in the country. I know that once I complete my time as being an RA, I will have developed a great skill set that will compliment my career experience. This scholarship is sponsored by CenturyLinkQuote.com.
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Summer is here! Developing Habits
I've been trying to write a blog since I got home... but I didn't get home until about 10:30 last night, plus I just didn't feel like doing much of anything... then I was rather exhausted and went to bed early.
It's crazy at how your body just crashes from exhaustion. Like, I've been able to keep up with everything for the most part all semester. Going to bed at 2:30 or so almost every night. And then waking up at around 7:30-8 every morning during the week. It was definitely an interesting thing to factor out. But I know that next semester I will have to maintain a better sleeping schedule. Luckily, I won't have any morning classes, so I will be able to get at least 8 hours of sleep on most nights. (hopefully haha).
I'm rather excited about next year! I really want to enjoy my summer, but I am really looking forward to coming back and taking on the responsibility of being an RA. However, I am going to make the most of my summer by developing habits that I need to carry on into not only the next year, but the rest of my life.
#1. Making a DETAILED and CONSISTENT schedule of my life. I was able to do pretty well with it in the Fall semester and during Freshman year. I slacked off during the Spring Semester. But I think sometime within the next week or so, I am going to start plugging in the schedule that I know for sure. So then when I get more stuff, I can just add it in. I also need a habit of making a schedule every single week.
#2. Have a decent sleeping schedule. Like I mentioned earlier.. as much as I would want to, I can't go to bed at 2:30 every single night. I know with doing curfew checks that there will be times where I will be up late, but I think that at least going to bed by 1, 1:30 should be a doable option.
#3. Reading. As of now, my reading list for the Summer is compiled of 5 books. Three are required for me. And two I want to read for pleasure. I will alternate from requirements. So right now, I started out reading the Hunger Games, which is a pleasure book. After I finish that, I will go to Not a Fan, which is a required book for me (I need to finish it as soon to before we assign our leadership team to read it). Then I'll go to my pleasure book, Blood Covenant, which is about a man who was a leader of a mob and suddenly left the mob lifestyle). Then I'll go and read the Way of the Shepherd. If I don't have time to read another pleasure book, then I'll go into reading Called to Lead. But I do want to make it a habit of reading SO much more than what I have been. If I recreate the love for reading, I feel as though I will have so much more of a mental stability that what I have been. Ha
#4. Internet. I spend SO much of my free time on the Internet. I mean, it is a good avenue of relaxation, but I do know that next semester, I will not have the time to do every single leisure thing. I feel as though I waste the most time on the Internet, so that will be one of the first things that I will have to cut. I feel that since I will be spending a lot of time reading this Summer, the habit of being on the Internet either playing a video game or random browsing, etc. will have the become minimal.
#5. Evaluations. I'm going to spend the next week or so writing down the things in my life that I really need to get in order before I even think about taking this step into a higher leadership position. While I am doing that, I will be taking the time to read more about leaders. Not only leaders mentioned in the Bible, but also leaders that were impactful to the modern world but were adamant in their relationship with God.
#6. Quiet Times. No one can never really be satisfied with their current relationship with Christ. You have to always have that desire to want to grow more and more. Simply because there is SO much more that a person can learn about Christ. I feel as though I have a pretty consistent quiet time schedule. This year, I have usually done them before I went to bed. I felt more attentive that way, and then everyone was usually in bed far longer than I was. I felt as though I wasn't really disturbed much. I don't think people really grasp ed the idea that I was having quiet times (when I was clearly reading my bible) when I did my quiet times earlier. But I really want to get into the habit of having my quiet times in the morning when I get up as well as before I go to bed at night.
Those are six of the things that I know I definitely need to work on this summer to create a habit. I know I've been given until June to actually start working on planning for next year. That will give me about three weeks of a leisure break. I need to actually begin applying for some jobs soon. Hopefully tomorrow or Thursday, but we shall see.
Through it all, I am really excited about the things that God has in store. It's just amazing of how far He is taking me. I am truly blessed, humbled, and honored to be able to be used as a vessel to minister to others, to help bring them closer to Christ! =)
-Quayla
It's crazy at how your body just crashes from exhaustion. Like, I've been able to keep up with everything for the most part all semester. Going to bed at 2:30 or so almost every night. And then waking up at around 7:30-8 every morning during the week. It was definitely an interesting thing to factor out. But I know that next semester I will have to maintain a better sleeping schedule. Luckily, I won't have any morning classes, so I will be able to get at least 8 hours of sleep on most nights. (hopefully haha).
I'm rather excited about next year! I really want to enjoy my summer, but I am really looking forward to coming back and taking on the responsibility of being an RA. However, I am going to make the most of my summer by developing habits that I need to carry on into not only the next year, but the rest of my life.
#1. Making a DETAILED and CONSISTENT schedule of my life. I was able to do pretty well with it in the Fall semester and during Freshman year. I slacked off during the Spring Semester. But I think sometime within the next week or so, I am going to start plugging in the schedule that I know for sure. So then when I get more stuff, I can just add it in. I also need a habit of making a schedule every single week.
#2. Have a decent sleeping schedule. Like I mentioned earlier.. as much as I would want to, I can't go to bed at 2:30 every single night. I know with doing curfew checks that there will be times where I will be up late, but I think that at least going to bed by 1, 1:30 should be a doable option.
#3. Reading. As of now, my reading list for the Summer is compiled of 5 books. Three are required for me. And two I want to read for pleasure. I will alternate from requirements. So right now, I started out reading the Hunger Games, which is a pleasure book. After I finish that, I will go to Not a Fan, which is a required book for me (I need to finish it as soon to before we assign our leadership team to read it). Then I'll go to my pleasure book, Blood Covenant, which is about a man who was a leader of a mob and suddenly left the mob lifestyle). Then I'll go and read the Way of the Shepherd. If I don't have time to read another pleasure book, then I'll go into reading Called to Lead. But I do want to make it a habit of reading SO much more than what I have been. If I recreate the love for reading, I feel as though I will have so much more of a mental stability that what I have been. Ha
#4. Internet. I spend SO much of my free time on the Internet. I mean, it is a good avenue of relaxation, but I do know that next semester, I will not have the time to do every single leisure thing. I feel as though I waste the most time on the Internet, so that will be one of the first things that I will have to cut. I feel that since I will be spending a lot of time reading this Summer, the habit of being on the Internet either playing a video game or random browsing, etc. will have the become minimal.
#5. Evaluations. I'm going to spend the next week or so writing down the things in my life that I really need to get in order before I even think about taking this step into a higher leadership position. While I am doing that, I will be taking the time to read more about leaders. Not only leaders mentioned in the Bible, but also leaders that were impactful to the modern world but were adamant in their relationship with God.
#6. Quiet Times. No one can never really be satisfied with their current relationship with Christ. You have to always have that desire to want to grow more and more. Simply because there is SO much more that a person can learn about Christ. I feel as though I have a pretty consistent quiet time schedule. This year, I have usually done them before I went to bed. I felt more attentive that way, and then everyone was usually in bed far longer than I was. I felt as though I wasn't really disturbed much. I don't think people really grasp ed the idea that I was having quiet times (when I was clearly reading my bible) when I did my quiet times earlier. But I really want to get into the habit of having my quiet times in the morning when I get up as well as before I go to bed at night.
Those are six of the things that I know I definitely need to work on this summer to create a habit. I know I've been given until June to actually start working on planning for next year. That will give me about three weeks of a leisure break. I need to actually begin applying for some jobs soon. Hopefully tomorrow or Thursday, but we shall see.
Through it all, I am really excited about the things that God has in store. It's just amazing of how far He is taking me. I am truly blessed, humbled, and honored to be able to be used as a vessel to minister to others, to help bring them closer to Christ! =)
-Quayla
Saturday, May 5, 2012
I feel as though my blog topics are somehow becoming redundant... This one definitely won't be as long as the others... but my RA, (and future RA partner) Morgan read this to us a few weeks ago.
Although Hindu, Gandhi had a very close connection with Christianity and admired Jesus very much, often quoting from his favorite 'Sermon on the Mount" chapter in Matthew 5-7. When the missionary E. Stanley Jones met with Gandhi he asked him, "Mr. Gandhi, though you quote the words of Christ often, why is that you appear to so adamantly reject becoming his follower?" Gandhi replied, "Oh, I don't reject Christ. I love Christ. It's just that so many of you Christians are so unlike Christ." "If Christians would really live according to the teachings of Christ, as found in the Bible, all of India would be Christian today," he added.
That's wow. Because I know I fail at that. We all fail at that. But to think that people are pulled away from Christ because of the way Christians act really hits me hard. I want to always be reminded of the importance it is to be obedient to Christ and to act like Him. People really watch.
Although Hindu, Gandhi had a very close connection with Christianity and admired Jesus very much, often quoting from his favorite 'Sermon on the Mount" chapter in Matthew 5-7. When the missionary E. Stanley Jones met with Gandhi he asked him, "Mr. Gandhi, though you quote the words of Christ often, why is that you appear to so adamantly reject becoming his follower?" Gandhi replied, "Oh, I don't reject Christ. I love Christ. It's just that so many of you Christians are so unlike Christ." "If Christians would really live according to the teachings of Christ, as found in the Bible, all of India would be Christian today," he added.
That's wow. Because I know I fail at that. We all fail at that. But to think that people are pulled away from Christ because of the way Christians act really hits me hard. I want to always be reminded of the importance it is to be obedient to Christ and to act like Him. People really watch.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)