Monday, May 4, 2009

WeUsed2bu Has Moved!


To all of our WeUsed2bu regulars and visitors,

We are so blessed to be able to announce our new web address, http://www.weusedtobeyou.com/! We have just finished the transition to our new Wordpress blog, which allows us the capacity to expand, and increases our ability to serve you, our readers. Along with all of the regular content and past postings, you will find new offerings such as articles written by “A New Me”, who has joined our ministry team to provide biblical wisdom from a guy’s perspective. Also..coming soon! “Christian Beats” Our expanded music and entertainment section where you listen to inspired music that will move you and make you want to get up and praise! And of course, you can still ask your questions anonymously, and get answers based in the truth of God’s word. The new site is better organized, easier to search, and, dare we say it—it looks hot! We are so excited to have you be a part of this new phase of our ministry, so come on over to Weusedtobeyou.com and join us as we give glory to God for all that He continues to do in our lives!


All the links on this page have been redirected to the new site. We are still in the process moving over our followers and updating our newsletter for those who have subscribed to email postings. So please bear with us during this transition.


“Then He Who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful.” Revelation 21:5

Visit http://www.weusedtobeyou.com/ now!!

How Does Your Life’s Garden Grow?


Written by Lynn Mosher from Heading Home

Spring has sprung! The month of May brings visions of clear skies, puffy clouds, sunshine, and, for many, plots of fertile soil for growing plants of all kinds.

Have you ever watched someone take care of a garden? A gardener is one who loves to see things grow, so he or she incorporates all the necessary elements for planting seeds, like planting for the best sun, providing water, critter repellent, bug spray, and tossing in some fertilizer and plant food, all in order to have strong, healthy plants.

No matter what size the garden, whether it’s a pot on the balcony, a small plot in the backyard, or a farm-size field, the harvest depends on the choice of seeds. And after the proper care, in time, the fruits of one’s labor, the product of what one has sown, will be evident.
One of the most important things a gardener can do is…weed! If a gardener does not remove the weeds, all his or her efforts to produce a great harvest will be dashed, for the weeds will choke out and kill the desired growing plants.

So, what does this have to do with you? Well, I’ll tell you. Here’s the comparison: Your everyday life is your garden. Your emotions are planted here. If you don’t keep them in check, they will grow and rule your life, just like the weeds, eventually becoming a threat to your life.

Keeping those emotions weed-free is up to you and no one else. What you sow is what you will reap, as the Bible says, “For whatever a man sows, that and that only is what he will reap.” (Gal. 6:7 AMP) This does not apply merely to physical gardens but to emotional gardens as well.

So, you have a choice: you can either grow beautiful, fragrant blossoms or nasty stink weeds in your emotions.

Solomon warned, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.” (Prov. 4:23 NKJV) Another version says, “Be careful what you think, because your thoughts run your life.” (NCV)

What you think becomes what you say and how you react to things, so if you dwell on negative thoughts, they become negative words and emotions, which become negative actions and will become negative habits.

If you allow your negative thoughts, as seeds, to take root, they will cause your emotions to grow in that direction. Do you say the same old negative things to yourself, keeping yourself bound by your own words and feelings?

If you live by your feelings, it is like constantly beating yourself up. You will always end up black and blue emotionally, making yourself a victim of your own doing.

If you drag all this baggage around with you every day, it’s like pulling them as dead weight behind you in a little red wagon or maybe in a U-haul. Your life cannot take this self- abuse.

Whatever your negative emotions…anger, self-pity, grief, depression, unforgiveness, bitterness, doubt, shame, insecurity…all these stand in the way of living a normal, healthy life. They restrain us from having that special relationship with the Lord.

So….how do you fix it? You start by filling your mind with positive thoughts, which will produce positive words, then positive emotions, and then positive actions. When you begin to state the positive, especially the promises of God’s Word, you can move on to the good things God has in store for your life.

The apostle Paul said, “So let’s not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don’t give up, or quit.” (Gal. 6:9 Msg)

What emotions will you plant in your life’s garden today? Will you plant nasty, stink weeds or beautiful, fragrant blossoms of good things?

Robert Louis Stevenson once said, “Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant.” So, plant those good seeds not only in your thoughts, words, and deeds but also in your emotions.

~~Blessings, Lynn~~

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Emotions--breakdown or breakthrough?

may-on-weused2bu


Are your emotions causing you to breakdown, or helping you to breakthrough? This month on WeUsed2bu, we’ll learn about the importance of not being led astray by our emotions. We’ll see how we can take control of our thinking through the power of God’s word, and press past our feelings and on to victory! Whether it’s anger, fear, jealousy, or bitterness, let us show you how God can heal the hurt and restore your peace.

Articles:

How Does Your Life Garden Grow?
by Lynn Mosher from Heading Home

Friday, May 1, 2009

I Have Never Been With A Younger Guy

Anonymous asks..

Question is okay for okay for a woman like me to like a guy younger than me?? He is 26 his birthday is Feb 12 and I am 26 also my birthday is Oct 11. I will be turning 27 this year and I have never been with a younger guy. Is that okay?

Trophy of Grace replies...

The age difference is not something I think you need to be so concerned about. He is not but months younger than you are. Perhaps some other things you should be considering though are..


1) Does he have a relationship with Jesus Christ? Anybody could say that they believe in Jesus but a tree is known by its fruit and in the same way you can see where a person’s faith lies by the type of fruit they produce in their life. (Matthew 6:43-45, Galatians 5:19-23) 1 John 2:4-6 says it best.. “If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him. Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did.”

2) Would he be a good spiritual leader? The husband is ordained by God to be the spiritual leader of the home. To guide, protect, pray over, and serve his family. To set an example for the children of a godly man. You want a man that is going to be in constant communication with God. Then you will be confident in him because you know where his source of strength and wisdom comes from. Trust me the more he loves Christ the better he will love you because he knows how much you mean to the Lord and He desires to please God. (Ephesians 5:21-33)

3) Is he a hard worker who takes care of his responsibilities? Look at how long he has been at his job. Does he pay his bills? You don’t want a lazy, broke guy that you will have to support. I’m not saying to be a gold digger. But you most definitely want your husband to be a provider. (1 Timothy 5:8)

4) Most importantly is this relationship God’s will for your life? God is all knowing and He see’s the future. Who better to ask? He never leads us wrong and has promised that if we need wisdom to ask Him and He will give it to us, we just have to be sure that our faith is in Him alone. (James 1:5-8) Be sure of this one thing my sister. God has a wonderful plan for your life. Plans for good not for evil. He wants to give you a future and a hope, but you have to seek His will so that He can fulfill His plan in your life. Trust me His plan will be better than yours. (Jeremiah 29:11, Isaiah 55:8-9)

The first 3 questions above should be like a criteria before even dating a guy. If a woman doesn’t set high moral standards that line up with the Word of God she could end up in a messy relationship without a lot heartache that could have been avoided had she of sought God’s will instead of her own.

I leave with these final words..

Matthew 6:33 But seek (aim at and strive after) first of all His kingdom and His righteousness (His way of doing and being right), and then all these things taken together will be given you besides.

Psalms 37:4 Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He will give you the desires and secret petitions of your heart.

Sincerely,

Trophy of Grace

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

I Would Rather Be With Edward Cullen Than Be With Some Church Person



Fellow Blogger writes... in response to Twilight's Blood Soaked Romance

Are you serious i dont aprove of this article at all no ok first of all twilight is alsome i would read that faster than i wll read the bible please and dont give me a response about your believes ok please you say that kids should be themselves and read now that im reading ALOT your going to tell me to read something more good for my spirit well NO! i agree on every single word that Karen had said ok i would rather be with edward cullen than be with someone thats a church person. thanks for reading..

Jasmin J. Cullen

Bye

Beloved By Him replies...

We’re not surprised that people are offended by the truth of the Word of God, or that you see us as the bad guys trying to take something away from you that you enjoy. It would be easy to flatter people and justify sin in order to be popular, but that would make us enemies of God. We love Him and respect and fear Him and His word too much to compromise how we share His truth. And hopefully you will believe me when I say that we also love you, too, or we wouldn’t be in this ministry. We aren’t here to put you down, or to be critical of your feelings. We want you to have a great life that’s full of joy and happiness! So when we speak out against something that is deceptive, such as the Twilight series, it’s to help our readers understand that even though something comes in a good-looking package, it can still be rotten at its core. I know you don’t like when I say that, but stay with me a little longer, and keep reading…

I can see that you feel really strongly about the character of Edward. It’s awesome to think about having a powerful, handsome guy be totally in love with us. Every woman wants that. God gave us that desire to love and be loved, and He wants it to be permanent. Eccl. 9:9 says that a man is supposed to live joyfully with his wife all the days of his vain life under the sun, because that’s God’s will for him. And God wants our man to be strong, to pursue us, and to make a statement to the world about how much he loves us. He needs to be a one-woman guy, who appreciates our beauty and wants to take care of us. Most importantly, he’s supposed to love us with Christ’s love, a love that comes from God and is centered in His word, so that he can help us draw closer to God in our own lives. All of these qualities are described in the Bible, and they are not fictional. They are real, just as God is real, and I can tell you that because I have blessed to be married to a real flesh-and-blood man who has walked through the fire with me and for me. There is the perfect guy out there for you, too, one who will be willing to lay down his life for you, not the way it happens in some story that was created by people in the world who don’t know the love of Jesus Christ. True love and desire come from God; it’s a love that’s stronger than death, it can’t be bought or bargained for, and it can’t be quenched or drowned out by what comes against it. That’s the kind of love that Jesus has for us, that caused Him to die a gory, bloody death on the cross for us, so that we could live with Him forever in paradise (references from Song of Solomon, John 15, I Corinthians 13, Ephesians 6, Hebrews 9 & 10).

The world wants to put a dark spin on love, to make it more dramatic and more sensual, so that it can pull on our feelings and keep us in turmoil. That way, we stay oblivious to the fact that we can’t find God’s love in what the world has to offer. God is the source of love, and in Him is no darkness at all (I John 1:5, 4:7). If we belong to Christ, and are children of God, we are supposed to walk in the light and have no fellowship with the darkness of sin, including the occult, demonic forces, and vampirism (II Cor. 6:14-18). That means not reading books that don’t accurately portray the love of Christ or the importance of receiving His salvation so that our eternal life will be in heaven with Him. (That’s another important point to make: Eternal life does not begin here on this earth, as it does for the vampires of Twilight; it begins after we die and are judged by God. See Hebrews 9:27)

Don’t allow yourself to be fooled into buying the cheap imitation of love that the world is offering through the Twilight books. Instead, I would challenge you to read and learn about the One Who loves you since before the beginning of this world, Who wants to bring you into His kingdom, and wants to give you real eternal life. The book of Revelation describes what He will look like when we see Him:

“Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself. He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses. Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written: King of Kings and Lord of Lords”. (Rev. 19:11-16).

That’s my eternal Beloved, my Savior, and He wants to be yours, too. I truly hope and pray that you will open your heart to Him, and everything He wants to give you. He wants you to hunger and thirst for righteousness, not for blood (Matt. 5:6). He already shed His for you. Think about it.

Sincerely,

Beloved By Him


Monday, April 27, 2009

Purity… From a Guy’s Perspective



Written by: Mike C aka 'A New Me'

Purity—does it really matter to guys? Wouldn’t a guy want a girl with more experience? Isn’t purity just being prude? Well, let me please clarify this subject from the male perspective. The shocking reality is… Purity matters big time. Regardless of what we might say or how we may react, no guy wants to build a relationship with an “easy” girl. The idea of a girl that we would respect and love fits the image many times of what we would want as a wife. No man wants a cigarette smoking, beer drinking, club hopper as a wife. That type of woman is just not trustworthy, and that is why many guys treat women disrespectfully. I mean, come on, do you really expect a man to respect you for the beautiful gift from God that you are when your clothing, attitude and demeanor show otherwise? How can you expect respect when you don’t respect yourselves?

Now don’t get me wrong, we (guys) by far are not perfect and there are many times when we just fall short. That is why it is so important when you’re seeking love and relationship, that you seek God first. Build your relationship with the Lord Almighty first, and He will place the man in your life He planned for you; He already has a plan for you (Jeremiah 29:11). Don’t jeopardize your purity and integrity to “fit in”. That wild, crazy party girl for most guys is good for only one thing, and we all know what that is. When a man is truly looking to love and respect a woman, we are looking for a trustworthy, kind hearted, honest woman. And when a Christian man is looking for a woman to love, he is looking for a woman who first loves God and respects herself.

Wouldn’t it be awesome to have a relationship built on a mutual foundation of faith and love, respect and admiration? It’s not a fairy tale and it’s very real, but it starts with purity for both men and women. Let me let you in on a long-running male secret (sshhh don’t tell)… we often, no, pretty much always EXAGERATE, especially when it comes down to our “experiences,” so don’t be another locker room conversation piece or another name in the little black book. Instead, be sure that your name is in the only book that counts, the Lamb’s Book of Life, so you may enter the Kingdom (Revelations 3:5, 21:27). Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understandings, in all ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight (Proverbs 3:5-6). The unfortunate reality is that society has made it okay to be sexually impure, but the Word of God tells otherwise. Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity (1 Timothy 4:12). Please keep your purity close to heart because it does matter to men, but most importantly to God, and it should to you. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and He will give you everything you need (Matt 6:33).



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