A Friend In Need

So one of my friends online has been having some problems lately. I won't tell you his name or his problems because I know he wants them to be private. But he asked me if God goes by the rule of "seventy times seven." What I told him was that "God has no cap on forgiveness." And the truth is, he doesn't.

Let me just say this. The ground is level at the foot of the Cross. Nobody has done anything worse than anybody else. We all inherited our sin.We lie because we're liars. We steal because we're thieves. We murder because we're murderers.

My unnamed friend said he has asked God to take his problem away, but it never works. What I told him is that you need to let God lead your life. No, don't "Let go and let God." Hold on to God and let God lead. Then he said that there are good weeks, then there are bad weeks. I told him that there will be bad days, you will go through valleys, God will hang you by your pinky finger over the cliff. But he won't let you go.

I gave him some hope through a song. This song, actually. It's called Need You Now (How Many Times) by Plumb. Listen to it, please.

You know, after I talked to him, I got the song "Savior Like A Shepherd Lead Us," stuck in my head. It really is proof to let God take the reins and lead your life.

Right now, while I'm building on a game I like, I have this song stuck in my head.

You know, God works in mysterious ways. And I always praise him for that.

God Bless,

Brandon

Happy Easter!

Dark red drops of blood flowed down long, brown hair. A crown, composed of inch-long thorns pierced the skull. The large cross that he was on, made of two boards, scraped against his organs that were exposed on his back. His hands were nailed through the palms and his feet through his ankles. His lungs were desperate for air. He shouted something and the sky grew black. Lightning struck, an earthquake rocked the earth.

That picture I just painted was of Jesus, the Son of God, dying on the cross. Just imagine, our Lord and the Son of God dying a gruesome death on a cross, suffocating. And he didn't do that for just me, he did that for you, and for your brother, your mother, your father, even the random stranger that sits on the sidewalk every day. Let me paint another picture now:

I saw the make-shift cross -- two boards nailed together -- with the three nails nailed at the hand and feet spots. A crown of thorns laid at the foot of the cross. Around the cross there were tens of people kneeling at the cross. I walked out of the red-padded pew and through the throng of people to the Pastor. I walked past him and kneeled down below the cross. I looked up at the glorious image and started crying.



This was about the same as our service this morning. So amazing. You should have seen it.

I just want to say this. JESUS IS NOT DEAD! HE LIVES WITH THE FATHER! THEY DID NOT TAKE HIS LIFE, HE IS RISEN! HAPPY EASTER/RESURRECTION DAY!

God Bless,

Brandon

Passion Week; Easter; Crevices

Happy Passion Week! You ask, "What is Passion Week?" Well, let me elaborate. Passion Week spans from Palm Sunday to Good Friday. Palm Sunday and Good Friday, of course, are the most important. Interesting factoid: in the Greek, Passion is actually translated "Suffering". So, when Jesus underwent Passion Week, it was more like Suffering week. My Pastor actually titled his sermon Sunday as "The Suffering Savior."

Easter is approaching. How will you celebrate our Savior's Resurrection? Every year, my family always has a family dinner with an Easter egg hunt for the children. This year, our church is having a Good Friday fellowship and Easter egg hunt. Our Pastor is preaching at the Sunrise Service this Sunday. He said we're gonna have it outside, and it's supposed to be FREEZING! He also has the idea to have the Lord's Supper Easter night. He'll have each family come up and have communion with him.

So I just got done washing the dishes. I washed our old frying pan, which now has scratches on the non-stick coating. Like eggs and stuff gets lodged in the tiny crevices. I sort of relate that to our Christian lives. The devil can look over our lives and lodge sin into those tiny canyons. So, we have to be on guard over those canyons constantly.

I hope you have a good Easter. I probably won't be posting for another week or after Easter, since we will have a lot to do after Wednesday. So, until I post again, this is me, signing off and wishing you a Happy Easter.

Until Later,

Brandon

Life

You know, life never ceases to impress me. A broken leg can heal in a matter of weeks, yet it takes years for a baby boy to turn into a fully-grown man. We can use our talents to glorify God, or we can use our talents to worship a false god.

For instance, the Pope. Hundreds, if not thousands or millions, of men and women orship this one man. He's just a regular man like you and me, he puts his pants on one leg at a time (I think, if he wears pants). He isn't God, and he can't imitate God.

Desiree, my little 3-year-old niece, broke her femur about a month ago. At first, she was even scared to sit up. But after about a week, she was sitting up with no problem. Then she started moving all around, and just about a week ago, she started walking! Of course, she has to use a walker, but at least she's walking!

Could just one person change the world? Could one person who starts a tiny Bible study with his/her friends start the biggest church in the nation? If the Spirit is truly in it, and God directs your path the right way, the possibilities are endless.

Until Later,

Brandon

Daily Post: March 12

Today's Post:

Alright, so we were having devotions this morning, and Desiree said to my mom, "Let me read." So she opened her Bible and said, "God says never pull the TV down on yourself again." SO CUTE, RIGHT?!

So my brother went to an interview for a job this morning (at 6:30!), and he got the job! Congrats, Josh! Wait, this means you won't be home and I'll have to be the go-for and fixer... Oh no... WHY?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

I was listening to my music today (specifically the song Right Beside You) and I just thought of one of my friends. His family has to move out of the house they're renting, and his mom just had a baby. He said that he won't be on for a while because he'll be packing. So please just pray for my friend Caleb. God has a plan for you!

I wrote a paper today. It's for history, and it's about the Australian Aborigines. Well, it was more of a story. I had to write a diolauge using a few Aboriginal words. So... I wrote it! And I had fun! Wow... Fun with school... Who knew?

Well, today has been fun, and it's not even half over! If I have more stuff to post about (or I forget something), I will post it!

Until Later,

Brandon

Daily Post: March 11

Sorry that I didn't post a Daily Post yesterday, it was a long day and very hectic. So, here's Monday, March 11's.

Today's Post:

Well, yesterday was... something. We went to Huddle House last night, and one of the waitresses actually recgonized us! Let me explain.

About a month or two ago, a journalist from a local newspaper asked us if we could be interveiwed for a newspaper article. We're going through an adoption, and the journalist actually read my mom's blog. So she wanted to interview us, and guess what? We were put in the paper!

So the waitress last night actually recognized us. She asked how it was going, and my mom said not very good. She also asked, after we had taken Desiree outside, what was wrong with her. My dad said that she broke her leg. Not like Desiree would tell you herself...

Yesterday was complete chaos. Once we got home, we cooled off for a while, but then my cousin and her boyfriend came, wanting to see Desiree. So once she woke up, Marana (my cousin) took Desiree outside. Then once they came back in, I had to go to choir practice. So, very hectic.

And, on a closing note, please pray for a family in my church. A good member died about a week ago, and his wife has been very sad (as expected). They were married for 50 years. But she came up yesterday and said, if the church helped her thorugh this time, she would rededicate her life to the Lord. AMEN, right?!

Until Later,

Brandon

Daily Post: March 09

Alright, so I have resolved to start making one blog post every day for a year. In my house, things get very interesting, so I have something to talk about every day!

Today's Post:

So today my cousin's boyfriend has come to help my brother move some stuff for my little niece that lives with us. She got a new dresser from her dad (long story), and we're putting it in. It's a lot of work, but when helping hands it won't take long. And in fact, it didn't!

Y'know, it hates me that I have tons of ideas yet my mind goes blank when I sit down at the computer. It's the same way when I'm going to talk to someone. I have this conversation in my head, and how it'll turn out -- I have notes, if you will. But when I go to talk to them, my mind goes blank and I get nervous, I guess. It's just me.

So the last couple of days (more like the week) I've been building stuff with my LEGOs. It's all Star Wars related, but at least it's something. I made a tank, a futuristic exploration ship, and even a couple vehicles. Here are some pics:

 

Alright, so a LOT of things have been happening the last couple of days/weeks. My little niece Desiree broke her leg. She pulled the TV down on herself, you know, one of those big tube-TVs. So she had rods put in her leg (her thigh) and she can't walk for another week (it's been 3 weeks since the accident). Another thing, yesterday we were going out to eat and the handle on the outside door of our van (one of those sliding doors) broke. I was pulling on it to open the door, and it broke right off. Ugh, how come bad things always happen to me? Oh yeah, and like a week or two ago, a plane crashed like just a couple yards from our Pastor's house. Really scary. Then last night, my little cousin David's face started swelling. Apparently it's something at the school he's going to. But they took him to the ER and they said it was some kind of virus. More drama. Like I said, in our house you can never go bored.

So, if I get any updates or anything happens, it'll either be on a blog post or on tomorrow's post.

Until Later,

Brandon

School Paper

Alright, so I had to write a paper for my Bible course today. It was about Saul's Conversion. You know, God can take the worst of sinners, and turn them into the most monumental preachers. Here it is:

When Saul, a man from Tarsus and a persecutor of Christians, was on his way from Jerusalem to Damascus, his whole life was changed. A bright light shone around him, and the voice of the Lord spoke to him. He asked why he persecuted Him. Saul responded in a puzzled manner, asking if it was He, Lord. The Lord answered, saying (Acts 9:5), “I am Jesus whom you are persecuting…” Jesus knew who Saul was, of course since he was God, and had a plan for him.


Jesus told him (Acts 9:6) to, “…get up and enter the city, and it will be told you what you must do.” The men who were with him were speechless, but they slowly complied to take Saul up, because he had become blind, and take him to the city. There, he stayed in a house and did not drink nor eat for three days. He saw a vision of a man named Ananias, who would give him his sight back.

Ananias, a servant and follower of the Lord, had a vision, where the Lord told him to go see Saul. Ananias replied (Acts 9:13), “…Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much harm he did to Your saints at Jerusalem…” Ananias did not want to comply, because he was bound by the flesh, to care about his own safety. But the Lord said to him (Acts 9:15), “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel…” Jesus had a plan for Saul, even though he had sinned against the Lord; he forgave him and had a plan for him.

When Ananias reached the house at which Saul was staying, he (Acts 9:17) “…laid his hand on him…” Immediately, there fell from Saul’s eyes something like scales, and he could see. He ate, and regained his strength, and was baptized. And he immediately (Acts 9:20) “…began to proclaim Jesus in the synagogues, saying, ‘He is the Son of God.’” Those who heard him were puzzled, because was this was the same man who persecuted the Christians, of whom he was now, just a few days ago?

Once the religious leaders learned about this, they plotted to kill Saul. But Saul heard of their plan, and he was lowered down the wall of the city by the believers there, and fled to Jerusalem. When he reached the church, the Apostles would not speak to him because they were afraid of him. But Barnabas took him, and told the Apostles of everything that had happened. Once they heard of that, they accepted Saul, and let him move about freely among them.

But he started to argue with the Hellenists (Greek believers), and they plotted to kill him. But the Apostles learned of this, and sent Saul to Tarsus in Caesarea, his home town. There he stayed, and preached boldly of Jesus Christ. And the church throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria enjoyed peace, and the Holy Spirit was with them.

Saul had an amazing conversion experience, the most monumental. He was turned from a sinner to a believer. Later he was renamed Paul. He was turned from Saul, the sinner, to Paul, the preacher. The Holy Spirit was among them, and sent them Paul as an instrument for the spread of the church.

God Bless,

Brandon

Daily Video: January 24, 2013

Alright, so it was hard deciding which video to post: Human or Gold. But, I came to a decision. This video was posted maybe a week or two by Manafest, and it is his song Human.

This song was written while Manafest, real name Chris Greenwood, was in a hard place in his marriage. He was having fights with her, and he made this song, saying, I never said I was an angel... I'm only human... Sometimes we need to realize that, that we are only human, and we can't do everything. We need God's help on everything. With his help, we "...can do all things through Christ who gives me strength."

God Bless,

Brandon

Daily Video - January 23, 2013

Okay, so this is a new thing I'm doing. Every day, I'm going to post a new music video, with a little description and thoughts about.

Today's video is:

Capital Kings - You'll Never Be Alone

Okay, so this song has very good message. The chorus goes, I'll be the street lights that guide you home, I'll be the G.P.S. when you've lost your phone, I'll be the song that's rockin' in your headphone, I'll show you the signs to let you know You'll never be alone. It tells you that God will always be there, like the street lights that guide you home, when you feel alone. If you feel alone today, know He is the street lights that guide you home, the G.P.S. when you've lost your phone, He'll show you the signs to let you know YOU'LL NEVER BE ALONE.

God Bless,

Brandon

Never Let You Go

Alright, so the video above is by the artist Manafest. The song is called "Never Let You Go."

The lyrics go something like this:

Hold on when everything is shakingStand strong when the ground is falling throughReach out to my hand in the darknessThat's holding youI'll be your peace in the waitingYour strength when you're broken on the floorHold on it's all worth fighting forCause I will never let you goI will never let you go

It talks in the second verse about "When you look in the mirror and you run away cause all you see are the scars from yesterday..." It's almost like it's saying you can't get past the day because you only see what happened yesterday, or what you did before. Well guess what? You can see past yesterday when you have God's grace. He tells you you don't have to worry about yesterday, but look ahead. He also says He will never let you go, but he doesn't say he won't hold you by just your pinky. He doesn't say He won't hold you over the cliff, holding you just by your pinky finger. But He does say He'll never let you go. Just remember that today when you think God forgot about you and let you go. He didn't, and he won't.

God Bless,

Brandon

Shooting

From my Facbook page:

"So most of you have heard about the shooting at the Elementary School in CT. Well that is what the world is coming to now, is it? So this is the "new circle of life": There is a huge massacre, then people pray and try to find God in it, then once everything dies down everybody forgets God and goes back to their normal lives. Guess what? Try to be in the parents' shoes. They have to have this grief for the rest of their lives, and they will have the hate for the shooter in their hearts for the rest of their lives. And you know what? God can take that grief away, God can let you forgive that shooter. The Devil will tell you to hate the shooter, but God tells you to forgive the shooter and forgive your worst enemy."

God Bless, and pray for all the families,

Brandon

Why Can People Be So Ignorant?

Alright, so I don't want to be grounded or anything, but I have to say my mind.

So the other day I was vacuuming the other day, and my mom and I was talking. We're adopting from Ghana, and on the waiting list for our agency, there is a boy who has been on there since we started. He is basically a carbon copy of me. My mom said she wanted him because he didn't have any real problems. She said she could see him as her own son. But she couldn't think of the others as her own children. I just thought, why? Because they have disabilities?

Jesus says to be in the world, but not of the world. Saying that having children with disabilities, that is being of the world.

There are children in Africa, even in America, with disabilities, who wants a home, but no one wants to give them a home. That is being so ignorant. We just want to sit at home, be ourselves, live our life in our own little box-world. Well guess what? When you get to heaven (if you are saved), God will not be pleased with that.

This brings to mind the message series that our pastor has been preaching. The Greater Christian Life. We shouldn't sit by while life passes us by. We should be living the Greater Christian Life.

I just wanted to share a poem I made with you:

There's a boy in Africa,
He wants to be loved.
But no one has "time enough"
To let him be held.

He cries, he whines,
He wants a home.
And everyone tries,
But no one hears his tone.

But the everlasting arms,
The same ones that hold me and you;
He looks at him and longs,
For someone that is true.

God sees you and me,
And he sees the little boy,
Why can't we open our eyes and see,
To give this boy some joy?

Now I just have to end with this song by Group 1 Crew:

Until Later,

Brandon

Music Videos

Alright, so I have nothing to say. I admit it. But I do have some inspiring music and music videos to share with you. Even if you don't like the kind of music I listen to, just listen to the words and let it speak to your heart. May God bless you with these songs!

Until Later,

Brandon

We Need God... NOW

You can never fall too hard, so fast, so far


That you can't get back when you're lost

Where you are is never too late, so bad, so much

That you can't change Who you are

--Chours from Who You Are by Unspoken


So this song is one of my favorites. It speaks real truth. You can never fall too much, too far, that God won't love you. He's going to love you no matter who you are, no matter what you've done. It's NEVER too late. Why can't people get that? They think that they have to be this and that and this and that to please God. But we can't please God. We will never be enough for God. It evens says in the Bible that all have fallen short of the glory of God.

How many times have you heard me cry out


"God please take this"?

How many times have you given me strength to

Just keep breathing?

Oh I need you

God, I need you now.

-- Chorus of Need You Now by PLUMB


Now this song is true... How many times? How many times has God heard you cry out? Every time! He hears us every time and will never quit hearing us. Oh we need God! He keeps up breathing. People need to know this. God is the only force that keeps our life going. That keeps our heart pumping. That keeps us alive.

I just had to share this because of multiple things coming up. And we don't even know how much we are thankful until we lose it all or things pop up.

Now I have to go but I will check in later. I hope this gave you hope, because it gave me hope!

Until Later,

Brandon

The People You Meet

It's ironic really... You think of Christians as "don't do anything with the world, only does stuff church-related, has no fun" but that isn't true. I thought of this because I play the game Clone Wars Adventures. It's based on the show Star Wars: The Clone Wars. And I have met three or four people so far that are Christians! Now, there are many people on my friends list that are non-believers, but I do have a few good friends. Like earlier today, a friend messaged me on Clone Wars Adventures, saying he didn't know I was a Christian until he saw my page on Wikia. Now, if you don't know what that is, I'll tell you. On Wikia there is a wiki where you can make stories of your characters on Clone Wars Adventures. But back to the point. I met a person a while ago named Daniel Hedrick -- in-game of course -- and he told me he is a Christian in real life. He also said he can't seem to mirror that on the game. I just want to tell him that he can't do that on his own. He has to pray and ask God to help him with it. Well that is all I have to say right now. I'm going to go in-game and do 7 Random Acts of Kindness.

Until Later,

Brandon

7 Random Things

Alright, so I got this idea from Brenda Price on Air1. Her and one of her friends went around doing 10 random acts of kindness. Why don't we try that? People need the help. Let's say you're out at a restaurant and you pay for the person behind you. 1 thing down! Then you go out and you see a homeless person, buy them a pair of shoes, and gives them to him/her. 2 down! Just like that. But I am not saying doing it just because I told you. Do it because God loved you first. Reflect God's love like a mirror, and mirror God's kindness, mercy, and love so others can know about Him.

The people need it. Maybe you can't get out and do stuff. Maybe you are just a kid. Do like I'm going to do. I'm going to get on Clone Wars Adventures and buy stuff for people, tell people God loves them, and just be the kindest I can be. But I'm not doing it on my own. I will not want to do that on my own. I will do that with God's will. Mirror his love. Because my love comes short of the glory of God. My life comes short of the glory of God. All I can do is have faith in God and praise him, and his love will come for me. His mercy, his kindness, his grace, will mirror off of me - because he had love, mercy, and grace on me - so that other people can know God's love.

I challenge you, just as I did on my Facebook page, to do 7 Random Acts of Kindness. Do not try your best. Yoda had it right when he said "Do or do not, there is not try." We can say that today because we cannot try, we cannot do on our own. We can only do with God's faithfulness and help.

Until Later,

Brandon

THANKsgiving

So we had our community wide Thanksgiving service in our town today. The scripture was Luke 7:11-21. It is about Jesus healing the ten lepers, and the one leper coming back to thank Jesus. Isn't that how we are today? So, you might remember as a small kid, your parents telling you to thank people when they do something for you. We can be like the nine other lepers, or we could be like the little kid and the one other leper, and go thank Jesus for everything he has done for us.

The pastor who did the sermon told two stories. Well, they were short testimonies. The first was of a cancer patient who, every day, would walk down the hall of the hospital, thanking officials, and saying hello to everyone else. The second story was of a surviving breast cancer patient. They took out cancer on one of her breasts, and in the process they found a lumb on the other side. So she had her family and her close friends to pray for her. And, when the doctors tried to find the bump on the other side, they said it was gone. They were puzzled, but the woman said she knew why it was gone. The thing in common with these two stories is that funding foundations came out of them.

It seems like this time of year, Christmas and Black Friday seem to overshadow what we are thankful for. What are we thankful for? We might say the norm things like "family, friends, a place to live, etc., etc., ETC." But Mandy today on the Air1 morning show made it clear. We should be thankful for our breath, that we are still living, that we are still healthy, that we have God who is there through it all. What are we really thankful for? Well, while you are having dinner with your family this Thanksgiving, remember this. God saved us, and this is a true THANKsgiving.

Now, you should know, since I LOVE music, that I should finish with a song. Well, I looked through my playlist, and it looks like I have no songa about Thanksgiving. But I do know one song. You may not think of it as Thanksgiving, but it is true!

Praise him from whom all blessings flow!
Praise him all creatures here below!
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost!
Amen.
- the Doxology

Until Later,

Brandon

Life is Beautiful

I saw the video for this amazing song, "Life is Beautiful" by The Afters. It's from the soundtrack of the movie "October Baby". The song talks about "All of the things that make us feel like we have it all. All of times that make us realize we have it all." That is true, isn't it? Compared to some people in Africa or even China, who have nothing, we have everything; we have it all. But people take it for granted. There is also a new song by Audio Adrenaline called "The Least Of These". It's about the kids half-way around the world who have nothing. If we love them, they could be queens or kings. But only if we love the least of these. Only if we love these tiny children just as Jesus did.

How come babies are being killed nowadays? You would normally think, "Killing babies? No!" But it's true. Not only abortion, killing unborn babies, but POST-BIRTH abortion. POST-BIRTH! Think about that, what is post-birth? Life, right? Then whoever is using post-birth abortion, like the doctors in Europe, are becoming murderers. Life is beautiful, do not take if for granted! And how come we only think of life when someone dies? The reason is because we are too caught-up in our own lives. We wait to die, but when someone close to you dies, you want to live for them. Then you go back living like you want to die again.

It is true, Life IS Beautiful. And if you want proof, just think of the people half-way around the world, starving. Think of how they think that, we're still living, so God loves us; life is beautiful. And we need to be thankful for that.

Thanksgiving is coming up soon. What will be in your Thankful prayer? For your food? For your friends? How about for your life? Think about it. Life is Beautiful.

I'm in the choir at my church, and we were looking at songs in our new song books today. One of them goes "May God bless you, May he keep you, May he turn his face to you. May he guide you, And Protect you, May he give you peace." But the thing is, God has ALREADY blessed ALL of us. He has blessed us with LIFE. Please keep that in your prayers. He loves you. He gives you life.

Until Later,

Brandon

Friendship

So I was playing Free Realms earlier, and I made good friends with a girl on there. I actually joined her guild. This really makes me think of friendship, and how big it is. It is actually bigger than just friends. It gives you someone to lean on, someone to be with in bad times and good times. They are supposed to support you no matter what! I guess I don't have that many words to say about this...

So I'm just gonna end my post right here!

Until Later,

Brandon