The Deal with Digestion

I’m sure you read about digestion in third grade. My friend had this electronic book about digestion. It featured a picture of the digestive system. If you touched the stylus to a certain part of the picture, it would say what that does and then give a sound effect. Yeah. We thought it was so cool to make the book say “rectum” followed by a fart noise. I justify this by saying I was little and bored. Not a good combination. But stay with me; this is important.
According to High-Tech Productions, it takes about 12 hours for food to digest completely. That means your burger lunch is likely still with you. That seems like a long time, doesn’t it? I mean, for 12 hours, there’s a bunch of rotting food in your guts? That’s gross…but important. I don’t think I have to explain why.
My point? It takes time to digest your food. You can’t just shove it down and leave it at that. What do you do to digest your food?
▪ Recognize your human need for food (or, rather, get hungry).
▪ Acquire the food (make that junk food).
▪ Pray over the food (as in: “Dear God, bless this bag of Cheetos.”)
▪ Eat the food (like a pig).
▪ Chew the food (some people skip this part).
▪ Keep it with you (at your waist).
▪ Remember how good the food was (and look for more food).
▪ Get more food.
▪ Share the food (if you’re in a giving mood).
▪ Swallow the food (unless it’s vegetables; in that case, just spit them out).
As you can see, there’s a lot that goes into eating food – a lot more than you think. It’s complex. It’s good. We want more. We NEED more. It’s necessary for life. Not everyone has it, but everyone wants it.
The same goes for God’s Word. It’s complex. It’s good. We want more. We NEED more. It’s necessary for a fulfilled life. It GIVES life! Not everyone has it, but everyone wants it. It’s amazing; it’s fulfilling! Without it, we are empty. Without it, we are dead. It nourishes us. It prepares us for our day.
You need time to digest the words of the Bible. You can’t just skim through it and then jump up to call your friend. You have to meditate on it, memorize it, think about it, share it. You have to live and breathe God’s Word. Just like you can tell someone eats very little (or way too much), people should be able to tell that you are filled with God’s wisdom! It’s not just an eat-and-run. It’s not fast food. You need to:
▪ Recognize your human need for God’s Word.
▪ Acquire God’s Word (it’s not junk food!).
▪ Pray that God will speak to you through the Bible.
▪ Read the Bible.
▪ Think about the passage and find out what God is trying to tell you. “How can you apply this to your life?”
▪ Repeat.
▪ Memorize Scripture so you’ll be prepared for nearly everything.
▪ Take time to remember and reflect on all God has shown you through His Word.
▪ Spend more time with God, reading His Word and living it out.
▪ Share God’s Word with everyone around you!

JOURNAL JOTS:
1. Are you really taking time to digest your spiritual food?
2. What has been keeping you from doing this? OR if you have been “digesting” your spiritual food, what has led you to do so?
3. What are the benefits of actually meditating and digesting God’s Word? What are the drawbacks of simply reading the Bible but not “digesting” it?

India - Pastor Attacked

On my birthday, just earlier this month, a pastor in India was attacked. He is still in custody. Here is his story according to The Voice of the Martyrs.

On Oct. 4, Pastor Prakash was attacked by 25 Bajrang Dal extremists while he was ministering in Kaiwara village, Bangalore Rural District, according to The Voice of the Martyrs contacts.
The extremists assaulted the pastor and accused him of cheating people. After the attack, the pastor was questioned and held on complaints of “illegal activity.” Fortunately, other believers provided evidence that the pastor had not broken any laws but had visited their homes for prayer. At last report he was still in custody.
Pastor Prakash has been in ministry for more than 10 years and pastors a church of 80 members. Recently, he had expanded his ministry to Kaiwara village, where 15 believers had been meeting for prayer on Sundays evenings.

The Voice of the Martyrs actively supports persecuted believers by providing legal assistance to Christians like Pastor Prakash who have been arrested for their faith. VOM encourages you to pray for Pastor Prakash’s immediate release. Pray for the safety of his family and other believers in the area.

In 10 Years...

I think if we knew just how short life is, we would live every day to its fullest.

Take me for example. At the moment, I am eating M&Ms while blogging and wondering about age. At the same time, I'm writing a book. On top of all that, I'm wondering what we're having for dinner. And somewhere WAY back there, God is speaking.

GOD: "Melissa, get your lazy self out of that chair!"
ME: "But God! I'm telling people about You!" *pause* "Want an M&M?"

OK, maybe He's not calling me lazy (or maybe He is; I'll never know). But I have this one thought that's been really scaring me. Here goes.

In 10 years, I will be 24. I will be an old lady. I might even be married (ok, that's not something I'm totally dreading, to be honest). I will be teaching Shamu impersonators how to jump over my head (and not land on me in the process). Who knows, I might make it to Oprah. But the point is this: my life is flashing before my eyes and I'm sitting here munching on trail mix.

And where will you be in 10 years? You might be 27. That's middle aged, baby. The downhill slope. I wonder if people get wrinkles at 27...?

I'm enjoying life. I love my family, my friends, my pets, my church, my God. I love shopping and simply wearing clothes (well let's hope...). I love writing and I love this blog and I love you readers. But, honestly, how am I making a difference in the world?

Did Jesus Bake Brownies?

Sometimes the small things in life make the biggest difference. Here are some ways to serve your community and be more like Jesus.

• Bring brownies to youth group. (Make sure this is OK with your youth leader beforehand.)
• Check out and participate in Operation Beautiful.
• Bake cookies for your neighbor.
• Wash your dad's car -- no fees, no hassles, just you, your sibs, water, soap, and fun.
• Send an encouraging text to someone.
• Support a charity. (TWLOHA, Compassion International, World Vision, etc.) Every dollar counts.
• Set the table.
• Load the dishwasher -- without being asked.
• Buy your mom some smell-good lotion. (Bath & Body Works is a favorite brand, but overpriced. The Dollar Store should have some sweet-scented frangrances for a buck.)
• Invite a few friends over for a Bible study around popcorn & M&Ms (or another fav snack).
• Guys: Open the car door for your girlfriend. Girls: Offer to split the bill.
• Find an inner quality that really stands out in someone you vaguely know but don't talk to much. Make a point of acknowledging that quality.

Blessed Be the Name of God

Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,

For wisdom and might are His.

And He changes the times and the seasons;

He removes kings and raises up kings;

He gives wisdom to the wise

and knowledge to those who have understanding.

He reveals deep and secret things;

He knows what is in the darkness,

and light dwells with Him.

(Daniel 2:20b-22)

14

So, I'm fourteen. And I'm very excited about that fact. Whenever my birthday rolls around, I never feel any older. It's different this year. I feel a little bit older, or maybe fresh and determined. I'm not sure what it is. Maybe I'm just imagining things.
13 was an amazing year. I went to Sky Ranch and Disciple Now. I got in touch with my friends again that are so dear to me. I've grown closer to God and will continue doing so throughout my entire life. I think I've gotten a better idea of what really matters in life; now I just have to use what I've learned. To recap on the age 13, I read several of my old posts. I got a kick out of reading my "I'm 13!" post. I'm sad that I didn't live out everything I planned, but I've grown so much and come so far.
I'm excited to share this new time in my life with you. I think writing to you has really helped me sort my thoughts and evaluate what I believe. Oh, I have a lot to learn. We all do. I'm thrilled to be given the opportunity to learn it with you.
Thank you so much, readers, for sticking with me through thick and thin. You all are so wonderful!

Your Sister in Christ,
Melissa

Lucky Number 3...Tagged!

TV/Movie Characters you relate with:
1. Aquamarine. So, I'm not a mermaid, but I relate to her. I can be deep, but when I'm with friends, I like to do crazy things like waving/smiling at random people, dancing in parking lots, and laughing a lot. I can get pretty crazy. ;) I love doing new things. Still, love is a really important thing for me.
2. Susan, from Narnia. She fiercely protects her siblings and is always worried about what the future holds. She struggles with knowing that Aslan/God is always there. She's smart, sometimes bossy, a leader. She's also pretty. :)
3. Katie, from Flicka. I love animals. I'm a good girl on the whole, but if I'm not given enough freedom, I get rebellious. Maybe not so much as this girl, though. Rebellious on a careful level. :)

Three places on you travel list:
1. Italy!! What can I say, I absolutely love Italy. I want to go to Italy on my honeymoon and stay in a place with cobblestone streets and eat spaghetti every day.
2. London. I took a 2-3 hour bus ride through London and it was beautiful! I love how they talk, and the chilly air, and everything!
3. Paris. What girl doesn't want to go to France?

Hit "Shuffle" on your iPod and list out three songs.
1. Love Story - Taylor Swift
2. Beautiful - Bethany Dillon
3. Ghost Ride the Whip - Family Force 5 ;]

Things I'm confused about
1. The Bible
2. Science
3. Love
4. Chapstick, chapped lips, and things like chemistry ;]

Browse your DVD shelf and randomly pick out three movies
1. Lord of the Rings
2. Devil Wears Prada
3. Amazing Grace

3 Things you wish you'd known earlier
1. Delaware is a state, not the captial of New Hampshire
2. The cookies for Santa go to waste.
3. Changing a life is the only way to get one.

If you HAD to date a celebrity who would it be?
ROTFLOL!!! Nick Jonas, of course. Not that you didn't know already.

If you were a celebrity, what would it be for?
Acting. Most definetly. <3

If you could give your blog a facelift, what would you tweak?
I would collect donations. ;] jk