Q:Verses to live by?

shatterrealm

Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’This is the first and greatest commandment.And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

-Matthew 22:36-40

Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.

-1 Corinthians 13:8

There are many verses that challenge me to remember the importance of love, and these verses I tend to cling very closely to.

Also, Matthew 3:1-12 is a super good passage to always keep in mind.

Did I really just find a good meaning in one of the most notorious, most disturbing films ever?

Laden with gore, violence, animal cruelty, rape, and a load of other unpleasant things, Cannibal Holocaust is one of the most infamous, horrifying films of all time. However, it is still a movie in which a good meaning can be drawn from. How? Click here to find out.

Whether you have seen the film, have no desire to see the film, or have just plain never heard of it, this that I’ve written is still meaningful. And in all honesty, I’m impressed with myself for writing this out and finding meaning in such a title.

I got a letter in the mail from the Army.

And I finally decided to give in. I’ve decided to trade in all individuality for the honor of getting to murder innocent people on the front lines, simply because my government has led me to believe they are the bad guys.

HAHAHA! Just kidding, Jesus’s love for me is too great, much too great for any desire of murder to arise within me… And it’s definitely stronger than any government that tries to brainwash me.

If you love deeply, you’re going to get hurt badly.

If you keep up with my blog at all, you may know that I have been a bit hardened to love, relationships, romance, and basically anything sappy. This is due to, yeah, you guessed it, heartbreak.

But I’ve been listening to a lot of Destroy Nate Allen lately and they have a few songs that are a bit on the mushy side (it is a husband-wife duo, after all) and they seem to have softened me up a bit. Quite a bit, actually.

Just the other day I read a quote from C.S. Lewis that said “If you love deeply, you’re going to get hurt badly. But it’s still worth it.” It hit me hard. It’s ignorant and selfish to be so hardened to relationships like I have been. I may not have made it as evident, but inside, I was absolutely disgusted and turned away by everything that was even slightly romantic and sappy. But I think Destroy Nate Allen must’ve slipped me a few subliminal messages about it all.

Yes, at the dawn of last year I experienced a horrible, despairing heartbreak. Why? Well, because I was in love, and the relationship did not work out. When you love someone, you become very vulnerable. You’re opening yourself up to another person, just as those monsters on Resident Evil open themselves up to be blasted to bits. Anyways, love is a dangerous risk. But it is also the most amazing feeling that you’ll ever feel.

Relationships with a guy/girl can be closely compared to the relationship we are offered with God. At first, we can be very thick-headed, but when (or if you ever) do decide to open up to God, many can testify, there is nothing better in the whole wide world.

Some of us go through heartbreaks in relationships, and some of us never experience it. When a heartbreak occurs it is always for a specific reason. Some of us might not know what that reason is for months, years, and sometimes we may never know. But just because we don’t know the reason, doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. God is much bigger than us, and His mind is much more divine than ours, that is why we call Him God. And God will never put you through something (like a heartbreak) that you cannot handle, and He will not ever put you through something without there being a purpose. The same goes for when we get ourselves into stuff that we shouldn’t be in, God turns our mistakes around and utilizes them for His advantage.

Anyways, what I’m trying to say is that God is divine, and Destroy Nate Allen writes good songs.

Sometimes, my relationship with God just feels so real. I’m not saying I doubt or anything. I’m just saying that sometimes, God just seems more real than others. It’s as if He’s not just ‘the big man upstairs that I pray to,’ but He’s actually like a Father to me. When I most need it, God is always there for me and that never fails. The relationship I have with Him, it’s just so real. Sometimes it’s just as real as if someone were sitting right beside me. Nights like that really prove to me that God is real and that He is very much alive. Nights like that help affirm the love that God does have for me.

I’m posting this simply because I can’t stand to keep quite about how great of a God I serve, and I’m posting this in hopes that you might read it. Maybe it will encourage you to pick back up with your faith if you’ve been stagnant for a while. Maybe it will open your eyes to see that God is really more than just some sort of religious figure. Maybe this will just sound absolutely stupid to you, and I’m okay with that.

So I’m just really sick of these Christian kids that have it in their heads that a relationship with a guy/girl is the only think that is going to bring them joy. If you believe in the Bible and Jesus isn’t the biggest source of joy in your life, then read it again.

I believe romantic love is just another one of Satan”s lies.

It’s just one more thing for us to desire that gets us off track with God.

In my English class we’re watching some stupid romance movie for whatever reason. I hate it. I hate romance movies. I can watch people be ripped apart in movies all day long but I cannot stand to watch romance movies; they affect me on a whole new level. I even know a few girls who, though they claim to love romance movies, they admit that they get them feeling very much depressed afterwards. Romance movies make it seem as though love between a man and woman is what is needed. Our country drives that so hard, that romantic love is all we need. I’m just sick of it and will take no more.That’s why I’m just going to rant about this for a bit.

Being married or being in a relationship with a guy/girl is just not even necessary, really. The whole reason we’re here on earth is to love. Not the fake, deceptive romantic love. Real love. God loves us so much, more than we will ever know. That love pours into us so much that we overflow with it. We’re here to give off that same love. We are to be so full of love that we can’t help but give other people that same love. The love of God is very much real. Romantic love is not. It’s a distraction, another one of Satan’s lies to pull us away from our Father.

Maybe you read this and you have found someone. Either you’re married, engaged, or just dating; whatever. Just don’t let that get in the way of the more important things in life. When relationships fail, we shouldn’t be so upset. I just feel like we’re setting ourselves up for failure when we get involved in a relationship like that. Romantic love is going to always fall short. The love of God will always, always remain.

A Rant About True Love

Since it’s New Years I’ve been hearing lots more people talking about “awh, if only I could be with a good guy/girl” and to be honest it’s been getting on my nerves. Just the other day I was thinking about how it seems as though everyone wants to have somebody. Everyone wants to have a significant other to spend their sweet precious time with. The world has coined the term ‘true love’ to mean the romantic sort of love. I just think that’s totally absurd and very wrong.

God has shown us a love that will surpass any love that you will ever know. Yes, even that husband/wife who are always there for each other— that does not even begin to amount to the love that God has for his children. So whenever I hear the words ‘true love’ used to describe a romantic relationship I will always feel like throwing up a little. If romantic love is the truest love you’ve ever expierenced my heart breaks for you, honestly.

The love of God is absolutely amazing. The profundity of it is something our human minds cannot understand. No matter how often I fail Him, He’s always there to hear me out, to guide me, and even when I’m at my dirtiest He still forgives me.

Search every nook and crannie of the world but you will never find anything as great as God’s love.

I write this not because of anyone in particular whom I feel needs to hear this. I write this because I myself have rediscovered how wonderful the love of God is, and when that happens one cannot help but tell others.

I live my life for God

But even so there are things in my life that sometimes I just want to do on my own.

Last night I realized this. There are open wounds that I won’t let God touch. But really in order for Him to be God of our lives, He has to have complete and utter control over every area in our lives. As a human this is heartbreaking news. But I’m in the process of cleaning up myself and giving it all to God; everything. It can be a really hard process but I know in the end I will feel so much better. And I’m already starting to feel some of it.

I challenge all of you reading this to do the same. If there’s an area of your life that you are keeping from God, don’t. Because He loves you so much and the only thing He’s going to do is make everything better for you.

God, His overflowing love, and his living word is the only thing that will survive through the ages. He’s the only thing that we ever need. Everything else is just going to collapse.

1 Corinthians 13:4-8

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.”

pretty powerful stuff.

Delivered From the Void

This is a story I wrote. A story that I think we all need to hear.

I stepped into the darkness and felt a disfigured hand grab hold of my ankle. It starts to pull at me. A 2nd hand joins in, no, not just a 2nd but a 3rd and 4th as well! I scream at the top of my lungs as I am pulled into the darkened void, helpless. I hear voices now. I feel the touch of some being that is less human than it is beast. This beast in its presence alone can destroy any sense of hope. Through all of this I see nothing, nothing but darkness.

“God, my God, why have you forsaken me? I ask for comfort, but the almighty God of the universe, you do not give me comfort! I ask for strength and hope, but you do not grant me either! God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” I cry out, only hoping to be heard.

I continue to hear voices, though I cannot make out a word. I feel deformed hands upon me. They scratch at me. They break the skin; it burns, oh, how it burns! I am left alone, left to die. My eyes close and I feel the world and all its burdens slip away from me. If ever I was dead, the moment was now.

The quiet, the calm.

The darkness, the peace.

My eyes open. There is a light, a blinding light. My eyes are extremely sensitive, but after a while, they adjust to the brightness. I notice where I am –my room, lying in my bed. The morning sun is shining through my window.

“Oh, child of Mine, you lack faith that you so desperately need. I am God. I answer to no one. But everything, it answers to Me. Even the devils themselves, they answer to Me. You cried out to Me and I did not come on your time, rather, I came on Mine. You did not get it your way, therefore you claim that you were forsaken by the very God who made you, as well as the heavens. I am the same God today that I was yesterday. And I will be the same God tomorrow. I will never forsake you. I do not lie. I delivered you from your oppressors. I delivered you safely back to the world that you know. Now, you of little faith, I have taught you this so that you may never forget. I will continue to have My hand upon you through all, even when you doubt that I do. You are my child. You are my creation. I love you.”

I hear a voice say this, and it is the most joyful, calming thing to ever brush my ears. Though not as much as my ears as my weary, restless heart. This voice brings peace to my heart, and calms my raging soul. This moment: beautiful and flawless. And through this may I never doubt the power of the Lord ever again.  And through this, may my faith grow. I will serve my God forever and ever. Though I fail, I will continue to serve my God forever and ever.

—kyleromain