Before I go into the next blog, I had said I would make a continuation of the previous blog "The perfect Christian" for the inquisitive minds. I got to work and started googling the "facts" so I would know what I was talking about, for those that question God or Christianity. Now, Im going to be honest. After reading so much my eyes started getting heavy and I decided to slowly put the pen and paper down and not do a blog that night. After all , Im just a 911 operator and my major in school is psychology NOT religion. I can only explain my love for God in my own terms and no I cant state facts like most can. However before my eyelids grew heavy I read somewhere that the Bible has 100% accuracy in predicting the future. So if someone can pick up a history or science book and believe what has been written in there why cant some do the same for the Bible? If you have questions dont hesitate to ask but dont miss out on how Joel Osteen describes it as "Your best Life now". The only way to tap into enjoying your lifes full potential is through God.
I just bought the iphone 4s and its amazing. Siri talks to me and she sings me lullabies at night. It is just an overall awesome phone. THEN i heard the iphone 5 rumors that it may be coming out by the end of the year. It seems with Apple I can never win. I got the Ipad2 and then the "New ipad" slaps me in the face. Then I realized chasing material things you can never win. When my daughter was first born I made sure she had Juicy Couture onesies and the matching shoes and all name brand clothes. Which is fine for a 1 month old because the onesies only cost at most 40$. Shes 4 years old now and a Juicy Couture dress for her would now cost over 80$. For an outfit she is going to grow out of in a couple of months because my baby is tall and growing at a rapid speed. But hey, if you have that type of money I will not knock it. Im still guilty of indulging in the finer things of life so I cant criticize!
I have come to realize however, that my daughter does not care or even realize what brand of clothes she is wearing as long as its "cute". Walmart, Kmart, and The Childrens Place have extremely cute clothes for great prices. I have also realized that she will not die if she does not get a new toy everyday or everytime we go to the zoo. We go to the zoo about every other week, so you can imagine a visit to the gift shop everytime can get costly! What children really value is quality time. Sometimes when the weekend comes I always want to be on the go taking Victoria to new places and trying new things. Then she will just tell me that she wants to stay home and play which to me, means she just wants to have quality time. Alot of times I will see parents get new toys for their children constantly and never spend real quality time with them and expect material things to take the place of their parenting. I even know adults constantly chasing material things and feel they have to have the newest clothes, shoes, cars, houses and jewelry. But chasing these material things will NEVER bring happiness because it will never be enough.
The Miami Dade Police Department just suffered some serious pay cuts and there are people that I am sure are facing the loss of their house. I just want those people to know that "this too shall pass". It does not matter where you live as long as there is happiness and a family full of love. There are families that live in one bedroom apartments and have a family of 5 and they are perfectly content because they have their health and they have love. I know of people that are rich money wise but they are sad and you can tell they are just miserable. Money and material things is not the cure all. If you were blessed with money overflowing, appreciate it. Dont look down on others because of social status and how much money you have. Someone who is in extreme poverty may be richer than you in the way of character and happiness. Those that may not be wealthy in the way of money be thankful for what you do have. You may be lacking in the riches department as far as money goes. But health, character and heart rise above it all. I love the movie Willie Wonka And The Chocolate Factory, it is a classic. I especially love the part where they actually get to go into the factory and explore. There were about 5 or 6 kids that won the "golden ticket" to be able to get a tour of the factory. One of the girls was extremely spoiled rotten and her father gave her everything she wanted no matter the tantrums she threw. They walk into an area where there are geese laying chocolate eggs, the eggs drop down to a weighing machine and it will say if the egg is "good" or "bad". The little girl jumps on the scale and it immediately says "bad egg" and drops her down the chute into the garbage area. There was also a boy name Charlie and he lived in a beaten down shack with all of his family, but he was the sweetest boy and came from a family full of love. Long story short the owner of the factory "Willy Wonka" saw he was a genuinely nice kid and gave the factory over to him. This was someone who could barely buy a candy bar and came from poverty but he was definately RICH in other ways.
Hebrew 13:5
Keep your life free from the love of money, and be content with what you have.
Sunday, March 18, 2012
Saturday, March 17, 2012
How To Be The Perfect Christian
The perfect Christian is one who goes to church every Saturday, Sunday and even Wednesdays. They dress perfectly every service in their Sunday best. They never curse or think ill thoughts and they carry their Bible with them wherever they go. The perfect Christian doesnt think sexual thoughts, doesnt gossip, doesnt have a bad day and overall just lives the perfect "blessed" life. This is what some believers and non believers of God would think. Because i have heard it before. I am not a Bible scholar by any means and we already know Im not much of a writer. But what I do have is a love for God. To sit back and take a look at the big picture of that is going on in this life we live and not say anything, I wouldnt be much of a blogger now would i :)
People hear that I believe in God and will mock the fact by saying "Oh your a Christian, so we all know you cant do that". When its something as simple as having a glass of wine. To witness to a non believer has always been difficult for me because they wants FACTS, scientists provide them with a so called sufficient answer so they will believe we were created from monkeys. I obviously dont have all the answers. What I do know is God is real. If you dont believe in God and dont have any intention of believing, you are most likely rolling your eyes at this blog. Thats okay I dont have scientific facts of what supposedly happened trillions of years ago. I have real life miracles to go by. Unexplainable miracles of where the only answer is God. These modern day miracles add up to the same miracles that were performed by God in the Bible back in his day. I will explain in the only terms i know because like i said i havent studied religion. I will give one example because I fear this blog will be too long and boring for some and I dont want anyone to flat line.
My daughter a couple of months ago came along to the driving range which is a place you practice your golfing technique. She was sitting far behind her father and I as we were practicing and one of the balls ricocheted and hit her straight in the eye. You cant begin to imagine the pain I felt for her. We arrive to the hospital, her eye is swollen shut, the Dr.'s could barely open it to examine. They started off with the worse case scenario that there is severe damage to the eye and she may not even be able to see out of the eye. We started calling family members and asking them to pray. One of the Dr.'s had told us that when he looked into the eye he could already see damage. By the time we arrived to Bascom and Palmer Eye Institute the Dr.'s examined her there and said they have no idea what the other Dr. is talking about because there is no visible damage to the eye. So you mean to tell me that the Dr. we first met with was seeing things? No, i believe God was just beginning his healing.
To make a long story short Victoria's eye healing has been a long road, her eye site is getting better and better every appointment we go to. Dr.'s have told us every time that her eyesight will not get any better than what it is now but I continue to smile and nod my head because I know that God is the ultimate healer and I will continue to have faith in him . What i have come to terms with is that I am not a perfect Christian. I am a sinner and sadly to say I dont make it to church every week. But I do have a relationship with him and it is my personal goal to bring glory to God. Going to church everyday isnt going to make me the perfect Christian. First I need to start with making sure I am living in a way that is glorifying to him. It is frustrating to me, to see someone call themselves a Christian but at the same time walk around with a sour puss look on their face and treat people like crap constantly when knowing God and claiming his promises does not mean living a miserable life.
I never pass judgement on anyone because that is not my place. If you are reading this blog you most likely believe in God or dont and are interested in hearing about "The perfect Christian" which obviously doesnt exist. If you are a non believer, I am a firm believer in "Dont knock it until you try it". Non denominational churches are nice because it is a "come as you are" attitude. No matter what background or how screwed up you think you are God accepts you and can change your life. Calvary Chapel is an example of a non denominational church and they have several locations. Dont be afraid to ask someone who believes in God about what are the steps to having a relationship with him. You are not going to be considered a "brainwashed" person like some have told me. You are simply trying something new and positive in your life. If you feel there is something missing in your life and have been trying to fill that void will alcohol,sex, relationship or drugs, those things will never fulfill you because it will never be enough. For the believers I challenge you not to be a Christian who is just warming a seat. You can go to church everyday of the week but if you are not applying it to your life you are just taking up space. In a world that has such negativity and evil things going on its nice to be able to hold on to something positive.
My response to some that see me for the most part happy (Because im only human and have bad days of course), no i didnt get "laid" over the weekend. Yes I have heard this so many times. I have an eternal joy in my heart that is Jesus.
Lyrics to an old Hymn called "Amazing Grace" what truth these lyrics hold....
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost but now im found,
was blind but now i see.
Tis grace that taught my heard to fear and grace my fears relieved.
Now precious dear, that grace appear the hour i first believed.
People hear that I believe in God and will mock the fact by saying "Oh your a Christian, so we all know you cant do that". When its something as simple as having a glass of wine. To witness to a non believer has always been difficult for me because they wants FACTS, scientists provide them with a so called sufficient answer so they will believe we were created from monkeys. I obviously dont have all the answers. What I do know is God is real. If you dont believe in God and dont have any intention of believing, you are most likely rolling your eyes at this blog. Thats okay I dont have scientific facts of what supposedly happened trillions of years ago. I have real life miracles to go by. Unexplainable miracles of where the only answer is God. These modern day miracles add up to the same miracles that were performed by God in the Bible back in his day. I will explain in the only terms i know because like i said i havent studied religion. I will give one example because I fear this blog will be too long and boring for some and I dont want anyone to flat line.
My daughter a couple of months ago came along to the driving range which is a place you practice your golfing technique. She was sitting far behind her father and I as we were practicing and one of the balls ricocheted and hit her straight in the eye. You cant begin to imagine the pain I felt for her. We arrive to the hospital, her eye is swollen shut, the Dr.'s could barely open it to examine. They started off with the worse case scenario that there is severe damage to the eye and she may not even be able to see out of the eye. We started calling family members and asking them to pray. One of the Dr.'s had told us that when he looked into the eye he could already see damage. By the time we arrived to Bascom and Palmer Eye Institute the Dr.'s examined her there and said they have no idea what the other Dr. is talking about because there is no visible damage to the eye. So you mean to tell me that the Dr. we first met with was seeing things? No, i believe God was just beginning his healing.
To make a long story short Victoria's eye healing has been a long road, her eye site is getting better and better every appointment we go to. Dr.'s have told us every time that her eyesight will not get any better than what it is now but I continue to smile and nod my head because I know that God is the ultimate healer and I will continue to have faith in him . What i have come to terms with is that I am not a perfect Christian. I am a sinner and sadly to say I dont make it to church every week. But I do have a relationship with him and it is my personal goal to bring glory to God. Going to church everyday isnt going to make me the perfect Christian. First I need to start with making sure I am living in a way that is glorifying to him. It is frustrating to me, to see someone call themselves a Christian but at the same time walk around with a sour puss look on their face and treat people like crap constantly when knowing God and claiming his promises does not mean living a miserable life.
I never pass judgement on anyone because that is not my place. If you are reading this blog you most likely believe in God or dont and are interested in hearing about "The perfect Christian" which obviously doesnt exist. If you are a non believer, I am a firm believer in "Dont knock it until you try it". Non denominational churches are nice because it is a "come as you are" attitude. No matter what background or how screwed up you think you are God accepts you and can change your life. Calvary Chapel is an example of a non denominational church and they have several locations. Dont be afraid to ask someone who believes in God about what are the steps to having a relationship with him. You are not going to be considered a "brainwashed" person like some have told me. You are simply trying something new and positive in your life. If you feel there is something missing in your life and have been trying to fill that void will alcohol,sex, relationship or drugs, those things will never fulfill you because it will never be enough. For the believers I challenge you not to be a Christian who is just warming a seat. You can go to church everyday of the week but if you are not applying it to your life you are just taking up space. In a world that has such negativity and evil things going on its nice to be able to hold on to something positive.
My response to some that see me for the most part happy (Because im only human and have bad days of course), no i didnt get "laid" over the weekend. Yes I have heard this so many times. I have an eternal joy in my heart that is Jesus.
Lyrics to an old Hymn called "Amazing Grace" what truth these lyrics hold....
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost but now im found,
was blind but now i see.
Tis grace that taught my heard to fear and grace my fears relieved.
Now precious dear, that grace appear the hour i first believed.
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Family time for granted
Family time is indeed the best time. After a hard day at work one looks forward to getting home and spending time with the family. The family could include anyone really. A brother, sister,mother, father, children and even a pet dog or cat. Only you can define what is family to you. The best time for me is when the weekend comes and I get to enjoy the company of my daughter. Figuring out what new places I can introduce her to is always fun for me and even just relaxing at home watching her enjoy the little pleasures of life. In this blog I'm going to incorporate some fun and exciting places to take the kids and even if you don't have kids these places may be fun to just try out on your own or with a significant other.One thing i know for sure is never take family time for granted. Life is short so if you find yourself struggling to take time out of your busy schedule for loved ones its time to reevaluate your priorities because before you know it, it may be too late.
Since Spring break is here and for some its right around the corner. Ive listed below a couple of great places I have experienced ! Enjoy!
The summer annual fun pass is here. For adults its 55$ plus tax and children is 44$ plus tax to enjoy these 4 attractions.
1. Lion Country Safari (West Palm Beach) - Ride through the safari in your car or a rental van provided. Get the chance to have animals come up to the car and afterwards enjoy theme park rides, interactions with giraffes, along with a huge water park.
2. Zoo Miami (Miami)- Enjoy the regular atmosphere of the zoo along with a Diego water park, a chance to meet Diego Himself, Giraffe feedings, Rhino Encounters and you can even rent a bike with shade for the family if you don't want to walk the park the traditional way!
3. The Museum of Discovery & Science(Las Olas)- This museum features the opportunity to watch educational movies in 3d and on a huge IMAX screen. This museum recently added a whole new building with new interactive activities such as a simulator air boat ride, an opportunity to sit down and relax watching the otters up close, a huge play area for the kids and sooooo many more exciting things that can be viewed on their website http://www.mods.org/
4. Miami Seaquarium- Get a chance to watch all your favorite dolphin, whale and sea lion shows. With an opportunity to pet sting rays and feed them, feed the sea lions and also take an up close picture with a dolphin. They recently added a couple of interactive things for an extra price but its all totally worth it.
Those are the attractions included in the summer savings pass..Now onto the probono activities :)
Jumparoos (Cutler ridge)- Jumparoos is in Southland mall and includes a huge room full of different kinds of bounce houses in a nice air conditioned atmosphere. Super cheap to get in, to experience hours of fun. This can also be compared to Monkey Joes(Coconut Creek and Boca Raton) which is also an indoor bouncing fun facility. After Jumparoos you can walk across to the yogurt stand and engage in making a yogurt of your own with whatever delicious toppings you may choose.
Sugar Sand Park(Boca Raton)- Where do i even begin. This is probably one of the best parks I have ever been to. The park is a huge tree house where the kids can run around and climb what can be described as a huge wooden tree house maze. In the middle of this "treehouse" is a mini water park for the kids and surrounding the huge wooden structure is the traditional swings and slides. This wooden playground has all kinds of hidden spaces for the kids to crawl through and its fun for the adults also! I have seen teenagers just hanging out and enjoying the carefree atmosphere of the park. Next to the park is a huge carousel and as soon as you step out of the car you know its there because of the circus music playing on the loud speakers. As if the park , splash area and carousel weren't enough you can walk into the building next door where there is a museum for the kids full of fun interactive activities. Art is also displayed all around the building by local artists and you can even purchase paintings that you like and handmade items..You can really spend the whole day at this park because there is so much to do. Occasionally I will take Victoria down the road to the local cracker barrel to enjoy some delicious country cooking <3
As there are tons of other places I could list, I think i will have to save that for another blog! But when I choose an activity I like to surround my day around it. For instance if you go to Lion Country Safari in Wellington and make the drive out there. Which is a long one for most. After spending the day at Lion Country is doesn't have to end there. Right down the street are some amazing restaurants and about 10 minutes away is the beautiful Wellington Mall. The mall is 2 stories of pure luxury with all of your favorite name brand stores and the most adorable kids play area.. The play area has a huge plastic waffle in the middle of it where the kids can climb and other fruits surrounding it!
Having kids, family and friends is a huge blessing, one definitely not to take for granted but enjoy to the fullest!
Happy Spring Break to All!
Since Spring break is here and for some its right around the corner. Ive listed below a couple of great places I have experienced ! Enjoy!
The summer annual fun pass is here. For adults its 55$ plus tax and children is 44$ plus tax to enjoy these 4 attractions.
1. Lion Country Safari (West Palm Beach) - Ride through the safari in your car or a rental van provided. Get the chance to have animals come up to the car and afterwards enjoy theme park rides, interactions with giraffes, along with a huge water park.
2. Zoo Miami (Miami)- Enjoy the regular atmosphere of the zoo along with a Diego water park, a chance to meet Diego Himself, Giraffe feedings, Rhino Encounters and you can even rent a bike with shade for the family if you don't want to walk the park the traditional way!
3. The Museum of Discovery & Science(Las Olas)- This museum features the opportunity to watch educational movies in 3d and on a huge IMAX screen. This museum recently added a whole new building with new interactive activities such as a simulator air boat ride, an opportunity to sit down and relax watching the otters up close, a huge play area for the kids and sooooo many more exciting things that can be viewed on their website http://www.mods.org/
4. Miami Seaquarium- Get a chance to watch all your favorite dolphin, whale and sea lion shows. With an opportunity to pet sting rays and feed them, feed the sea lions and also take an up close picture with a dolphin. They recently added a couple of interactive things for an extra price but its all totally worth it.
Those are the attractions included in the summer savings pass..Now onto the probono activities :)
Jumparoos (Cutler ridge)- Jumparoos is in Southland mall and includes a huge room full of different kinds of bounce houses in a nice air conditioned atmosphere. Super cheap to get in, to experience hours of fun. This can also be compared to Monkey Joes(Coconut Creek and Boca Raton) which is also an indoor bouncing fun facility. After Jumparoos you can walk across to the yogurt stand and engage in making a yogurt of your own with whatever delicious toppings you may choose.
Sugar Sand Park(Boca Raton)- Where do i even begin. This is probably one of the best parks I have ever been to. The park is a huge tree house where the kids can run around and climb what can be described as a huge wooden tree house maze. In the middle of this "treehouse" is a mini water park for the kids and surrounding the huge wooden structure is the traditional swings and slides. This wooden playground has all kinds of hidden spaces for the kids to crawl through and its fun for the adults also! I have seen teenagers just hanging out and enjoying the carefree atmosphere of the park. Next to the park is a huge carousel and as soon as you step out of the car you know its there because of the circus music playing on the loud speakers. As if the park , splash area and carousel weren't enough you can walk into the building next door where there is a museum for the kids full of fun interactive activities. Art is also displayed all around the building by local artists and you can even purchase paintings that you like and handmade items..You can really spend the whole day at this park because there is so much to do. Occasionally I will take Victoria down the road to the local cracker barrel to enjoy some delicious country cooking <3
As there are tons of other places I could list, I think i will have to save that for another blog! But when I choose an activity I like to surround my day around it. For instance if you go to Lion Country Safari in Wellington and make the drive out there. Which is a long one for most. After spending the day at Lion Country is doesn't have to end there. Right down the street are some amazing restaurants and about 10 minutes away is the beautiful Wellington Mall. The mall is 2 stories of pure luxury with all of your favorite name brand stores and the most adorable kids play area.. The play area has a huge plastic waffle in the middle of it where the kids can climb and other fruits surrounding it!
Having kids, family and friends is a huge blessing, one definitely not to take for granted but enjoy to the fullest!
Happy Spring Break to All!
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Marriage Under Pressure
I would like to start off by saying that I am not a writer by any means, but when something is brought to my attention I like to address it.This blog will most likely have gramatical errors from start to finish but im speaking from the heart. Now a days there is an underlying pressure or obligation to get married and in certain peoples eyes if you are not married then you are doing something wrong or your family is doomed from the start.
To be legally married is a simple document or a piece of paper signed by a judge or a person authorized to perform marriages. To say that a relationship will not last or children involved in an unmarried cohabitation will become screwed up is just plain ignorant. The way children are raised or how they will turn out has nothing to do with a piece of paper, it has to do with the parents and how they raise the child and what type of environment they are brought up in. When your child is faced with certain obstacles in life a piece of paper is not going to save them. I received an email with a link today and the link was somewhat unsettling..To sum it up in a nutshell, the link had to do with parents cohabiting together unmarried and "studies" showed that the children involved are more likely to become depressed,have social problems and a whole list of other negative outcomes.
As a parent of a beautiful and happy 4 year old daughter , living in a cohabitation scenario ,can imagine how i felt. My first thought was this "study" is the biggest piece of crap. Where do I even begin. We are in 2012 where there are so many different types of families. There is the single mother or father living with their children alone, there are parents who are not in a relationship together living together with their children, there are gay couples who have adopted and so many other types of scenarios. A study that says you should be married or your children are more likely to be doomed? FALSE
There are so many different factors when it comes to raising a child. My thoughts are if both parents are onboard and on the same page in raising the child the likelihood of failure is lower. If a good foundation is set from the beginning along with constant love and consistency being shown no matter what circumstances are given I feel the child will be able to take on the world without any problems as long as that support is there. There are children that are raised by their grandparents or maybe even one grandparent and is a "study" going to tell me now that a child raised by a grandparent/grandparents are more likely to fail at life because they may not be living under a "married" setting? I know of many successful and extremely happy people that have been raised in the worst conditions and have rose above it "issue" free.
To be legally married is a simple document or a piece of paper signed by a judge or a person authorized to perform marriages. To say that a relationship will not last or children involved in an unmarried cohabitation will become screwed up is just plain ignorant. The way children are raised or how they will turn out has nothing to do with a piece of paper, it has to do with the parents and how they raise the child and what type of environment they are brought up in. When your child is faced with certain obstacles in life a piece of paper is not going to save them. I received an email with a link today and the link was somewhat unsettling..To sum it up in a nutshell, the link had to do with parents cohabiting together unmarried and "studies" showed that the children involved are more likely to become depressed,have social problems and a whole list of other negative outcomes.
As a parent of a beautiful and happy 4 year old daughter , living in a cohabitation scenario ,can imagine how i felt. My first thought was this "study" is the biggest piece of crap. Where do I even begin. We are in 2012 where there are so many different types of families. There is the single mother or father living with their children alone, there are parents who are not in a relationship together living together with their children, there are gay couples who have adopted and so many other types of scenarios. A study that says you should be married or your children are more likely to be doomed? FALSE
There are so many different factors when it comes to raising a child. My thoughts are if both parents are onboard and on the same page in raising the child the likelihood of failure is lower. If a good foundation is set from the beginning along with constant love and consistency being shown no matter what circumstances are given I feel the child will be able to take on the world without any problems as long as that support is there. There are children that are raised by their grandparents or maybe even one grandparent and is a "study" going to tell me now that a child raised by a grandparent/grandparents are more likely to fail at life because they may not be living under a "married" setting? I know of many successful and extremely happy people that have been raised in the worst conditions and have rose above it "issue" free.
In the Christian community there are many close minded people.From what I have learned Jesus Loves ALL, he doesn't pick and choose based on legalities, race, sexual preference or anything else..No one is exempt .Back to the topic of close minded people, me and my daughters father experienced this first hand when Victoria was around 10 months old and we wanted to participate with her in baby dedication. We both go to church and have a huge love for God and both decided we were going to raise Victoria to have that same love and value as well. For those that do not know what a baby dedication is , its a family coming forth with their child to make a promise to the Lord to do everything within their power to raise the child in a godly way, prayerfully until he or she can make a decision on his or her own to follow God. Most churches have you go to a class before you go forward with the dedication. After the class we were told that if we did not get married we couldn't go forward with dedicating Victoria. My thoughts were ,we are coming forward to do something positive in our daughters life but because we aren't legally "married" we cant go through with this? Long story short we spoke with the head pastor and after a long debate we were allowed as an unmarried couple to dedicate our baby..
Why force marriage or make marriage the main concern when nowadays so many children are born out of wedlock and there are so many different cases. The main concern should be the children and is the child in a household full of love and positive influences. Because our children are the future. To put this pressure of marriage when there are marriages with the parents fighting and under constant tension in front of their children or the father beating the mother is just ridiculous.
I have learned only I know what is best for my daughter and Im sure her father feels the same. No we aren't married and no we aren't together. But yes we both love her more than anyone could imagine. We have created a strong foundation of love that cannot be broken. We have begun to instill values that are important to us including having a love of God. If u are a believer or even a non believer there is the saying "come as you are". I am proud to say no I am not married but I am raising my daughter on the right path. When it comes to your children dont let anyone tell you what is right or what is wrong and certainly dont feel pressure when it comes to marriage. All we need is Love..
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