The Trayvon Martin DECEPTION!

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Is the New Definition of a "Good Relationship" Accurate?

Follow @MoniceSharde Recently, I met a young man that holds an interest in me & has what many would say are good qualities. He is a college graduate, goal oriented, funny, and handsome... And honestly, a few years ago, that would have been enough for me to think to myself "He is a good enough candidate to be a boyfriend!"  I would've NEVER thought to ask about his belief in Christ. I would've gladly began a relationship with him.. A relationship I would've defended and granted the title: "Good Relationship"

However, since I have grown in the Word and asked Jesus Christ to renew my heart, obeying what is acceptable to Him and removing what isn't - I had to ask this young man about the Word of God and was his beliefs aligned with it. But he is not a man after God's own heart. He is very clear about his rebellion toward Jesus Christ, His Will for our lives and anything that it includes. This was a deal breaker for me. 



As this society has decreased in morality & substantial values, the definition of a "good relationship" has degenerated! In affect, we can agree that the NEW definition of a good relationship is lacking! The qualities that are sought in men and women are financial stability, ambition, level of physical attraction, nice, knows how to behave according to surroundings (etc etc etc)... With this being said, there is a quality that is more important than all of the above traits of a man/woman -put together.. Ironically, many overlook it, as I once would! When a man or woman follows the Will of God by way of Jesus Christ, all goodness will encompass that person's character. Ecclesiastes 4:4 tells us the vanities in having ambitions that outweigh our love for God. This includes seeking or molding and partaking in an ungodly rooted relationship.

What happens when this type of guy doesn't believe in, follow, or submit to The Will of The Most High? 

 

"Blessed are those that do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life. For without are dogs and sorcerers and whore-mongers and murderers and idolators and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie" - Revelation 22:14&15

"For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also" -Luke 12:34

"The fool hath said in his heart there is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: there is none that doeth good." - Psalms 53:1

"For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God, for it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness" - 1 Corinthians 3:19

"Either make the tree good and his fruit good or the tree corrupt and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit" - Matthew 12:33 & Luke 6:44

The Word is VERY clear about those that refuse His Word and Will! If you are someone that Loves the Lord Jesus Christ.. You cannot ride off into the sunset (proverbial) and be joined with someone that isn't a believer! The Lord's purpose by design is for the man to follow God (Proverbs 1:2-15) and through this, be a leader for the household.

"In all thy ways, acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy paths" - Proverbs 3:6

"Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling and to present you falling and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen" - Jude 1:24&25

"Be ye not unequally yolked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness?" - 2 Corinthians 6:14

It is IMPOSSIBLE to have a "good relationship" without following The Perfect Will of The Most High God! So remember, the world's standards and qualities of what constitutes a good relationship are commandments of men.. But The Word of God should ALWAYS be weighed against the commandments of men, for it's the only acceptable standard and when followed, has proven itself to be RIGHT and WORTHY! 

Popular Culture says Y.O.L.O. but Christ says NO NO!

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For the past couple of months I have been hearing and seeing the term "Y.O.L.O." and didn't think to ask what it meant. Because I don't keep up with the trends of popular culture very much, I just thought it was an acronym for something in hip-hop but really couldn't have cared less about its meaning. However, earlier today a guy sent me a message (through social networking) and his username was Y.O.L.O. and I decided to look it up. I found the above picture of Zac Efron with a Y.O.L.O tattoo on his hand. Also, Jenelle from MTV's Teen Mom has gotten one as well:

The meaning of Y.O.L.O. is interpreted in through a mixtape by rappers Drake and Rick Ross, titled "You Only Live Once" which has taken Hollywood by storm and although people used this term frequently in the past, it's taken on a brand of its own.

Ironically, this is a terrible message to impressionable minds, particularly those that have not heard what the Word of God has to say about this! 

The bible teaches us that everyone that accepts the gift of salvation through obedience by faith will not live once but TWICE!

• John 11:25 says: "Jesus said to her, I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live.."

•  1 Thess 4:14 "For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him."
• Rev 20:5 "But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection"
• Psalm 71:20 " Thou, which hast shewed me great and sore troubles, shalt quicken me again, and shalt bring me up again from the depths of the earth."

This tells us that believers in Christ will physically die to the sin of this world but Jesus will give us new bodies so that we can be caught up to meet him (1 Corinth 15). Do NOT fall into the lies of this world.. The lies of popular culture are satan driven! Jesus has overcome death & so shall we live again if we do the Will of The Most High. Popular Culture says Y.O.L.O. but to that, Jesus says NO NO!

Testimony: From Spiritual Rags to Riches

Follow @MoniceSharde I want to share my testimony with you so that you will have a better understanding of my journey to loving and obeying The Most High. 

I was raised by a single parent (mother) and had a close relationship to my maternal grandmother. My mother was considered the "black sheep" of the family because she never went along with traditions of man, well before she could understand God was calling her out from among her family. Although at that time, she didn't have a strong personal relationship with Jesus Christ, she always recognized that He was Lord and Savior and taught me to be humble, kind, respectful, reliable and trustworthy. She always encouraged me to pray and to lean on Him for strength. Needless to say, being a single mother was not easy for her and she fell into sin that threatened to steal her life. During this time, she was still very active in parenting and was "burning the candle on both ends" so to speak. I would pray daily that she became all that God had for her to be. I believed all she taught me and knew although I couldn't see Christ, He was my strength and was the ONLY one that could change/fix what man could not. So I held on to that faith and continued to pray my mother out of darkness. I went through elementary school, high school, trade school and into the working world holding on to Jesus and trying to build my relationship with Him, which my mom continued to encourage even when she was spiritually weak and wasn't depending on Him to change her.

In 2005, she came completely out from under satan's grip. For that entire year, she did her personal study to find out who Jesus REALLY was, without the influence of the counterfeit-christ that the Western culture's Pagan Rome-inherited teachings give. She began teaching me what she had learned and because I was falling away from Christ, I wasn't interested. The things she was learning about Christ wasn't what the world believes of Him. Yes, He is full of compassion, mercy/grace and love - He is also TRUTH and the darkness of this world is extremely offended when that TRUTH is spoken. It reveals that the walk we think we have with the TRUE Christ is nothing more than a crooked path with the counterfeit-christ of this world (satan). It reveals that ALL things are spiritual, righteous or wicked.. And that, if we decide to decline to accept the gift of salvation and our obedience that is required to effectively receive it, we will be eternally separated from Christ - which results in hell. This didn't sit well with what my eschewed understanding of Him was. It didn't allow me to feel comfortable in my sin nor did it make excuses for it. After a battle of 2 years (from the age of 20 til 22), I purposed in my heart to stop fighting what God was doing in my mother's life and accept Him-COMPLETELY- into my own.

Once I made this leap of faith- TRUE FAITH - I saw EVERYTHING differently. I was in college and once I saw the TRUTH, I no longer had the same reasoning for college as I originally did. Before, I was only in college to get a better career, have lots of money, and live the American Dream. Afterward, I was sickened by my original thoughts. I knew I wasn't in school for myself nor was to take a path I was passionate about when I had a wicked heart. I learned that my desires were to be aligned with Christ's PERFECT Will. So in this, I changed majors (from psychology to communications), after prayer and conformation about what I should do. I could no longer call those around me "friends" because I became too peculiar for them. I stopped dating because I don't want anything detouring my walk with Christ and unless the man is someone that loves the Lord with all their heart and follows His Will (including virginity or celibacy until marriage), I cannot date Him. My heart did ache because things were drastically changing but I also felt peace in knowing The Lord I serve was pleased with my willingness to change. 

Now, I am 26, building on my relationship with the Lord and asking Him to make my heart more and more in alignment with His Will, completing a B.A., and being a vessel to let as many as will hear about Jesus Christ and His love for us all if we just accept it!

Why "Acceptance" of Homosexuality is Wrong

Follow @MoniceSharde Last night, I was tweeting about why homosexuality is a sin to God. Earlier today, one of my followers (Carol) sent a link to me (via twitter) of her blog post, titled "Acceptance and Coming Out." The blog was about her daughter's choice to engage in bi sexual activity and Carol's journey of accepting it. She used scriptures to explain that Christ loves us all and that instead of her distancing herself from her daughter, she decided to accept this lifestyle and the mate her daughter has chosen. On surface, this ideology appears kind, meek and humble - as Christ has asked us to behave. HOWEVER, if we seek deeper in the Lord's Word, we will see that the REAL topic at hand is not rather we are to love someone or not... But if we are to ACCEPT them IN their sin.

I decided to write about this topic because for sometime, it was something I struggled with as well. I had many gay friends and once I became a follower of Christ, I was torn on how to deal with my relationships with those that were set on continuing in that sinful lifestyle. I felt that if I stopped hanging out with them, I'd be a judgmental person, yet if I continued being around them, I wasn't upholding my belief in The Word. After much study, prayer and experiences that provided the closure I needed on this topic - I understood that ending my dealings with them, yet continuing to love & pray for their salvation, was EXACTLY what God wants His Followers to do.

When people try to uphold the idea of accepting the sin of homosexuality, the misunderstanding of Christ's character is always used as "proof" that we are to be alright with this. Scriptures that speak about Christ's compassion and love and our duty to be that way as well (Romans 13:8, Ephesians 4:2, 1 John 4:7, Romans 5:8..etc) are often cited. Yes, Christ MOST DEFINITELY has compassion for us all and LOVES us ALL and we are to DO THE SAME. I am NOT here to dispute that fact! However, I AM here to explain how this can still be done without compromising the Word of God. 



Whenever we are in question about ANYTHING, we are to turn to the Holy Bible. It is infallible and will, most assuredly, give us the answers we seek.


In this case, its best to cover the characteristics of sin (1 John 5:17). The bible tells us that sin is the transgression of the Law of God (1 John 3:4). The entire law is founded upon the Love of God and our obedience to it by demonstrating love to Him and one another (Deut 30:15-16, Matt 22:35-40). This concludes that the ROOT of ALL SIN is SELFISHNESS. Because the bible has told us homosexuality is sin (Romans 1, Leviticus 18:22,20:13, 1Corinth 6:9-10) -we know it is ROOTED in selfishness. Paul gives all the characteristics of Love in 1Corinth 13:4-8. It tells us Love does NOT rejoice at WRONG-DOING but instead, REJOICES WITH TRUTH. It also tells us that Love NEVER ENDS.


According to the homosexual agenda, it is often quoted "Love is Love." However, now that we have a clear definition of what Love is, we can know that the idea of a homosexual "love" is counterfeit of the real thing. Rejoicing in homosexuality, which is sin, is NOT LOVE. The bible tells sin WILL BE DESTROYED (Romans 8:13, 12:2, Rev 21:8). Sin is not love. Transgression of God's Law is not Love. Christ told us in John 14:15 "If ye LOVE me, KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS." So we can move on from ANY confusion about homosexuality being a sin.


Now, how do we uphold our Love for The Lord and not be judgmental? The bible tells us to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. If you are a follower of Christ, you do all you can to refrain from sinning. You repent daily and commit to doing all things in God's Will, which keeps you blameless from transgression. In this, mercy and grace cover your short-comings. This is the only way to love oneself. And you love your neighbor the SAME WAY. However, those that practice a homosexual lifestyle are NOT repentive, do NOT refrain from committing this sin and REFUSE to do God's Will. So it is not us that has REFUSED to love our neighbor. Its their sin that has REFUSED to LOVE us! We are blameless, they are not!
 In 1Peter 2:9, we are told that we are called OUT of darkness INTO the light. We are no longer to entertain sin. God has redeemed us from it and we are FREE! It would be insane to return to bondage once you are freed from it. Paul tells us to stay AWAY from sin (2Thess 3:6, Ephesians 5:3-11), having NO part of it or those that indulge in it!


Our LOVE for the Lesbian, Gay Bi-sexual, Transgender (LGBT) community should not waiver. However, we cannot be "friends" with ANYONE that is at WAR with GOD. We cannot "accept" their way of life, we cannot excuse their poor decisions. We are only to pray for them, in hopes that they turn from their wicked ways and repent, accepting the Love of Christ as we did.

Desires of Thine Heart

Follow @MoniceSharde We often hear the following scripture, in part, from Psalms 37:4 quoted: “Delight thyself also in the LORD: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.” The beginning of this scripture is rarely repeated. SO people go out into the world and believe that, even when they are spiritually ill, can ask God for the desires of their (wicked) hearts and receive all they have asked for. When they don't, they either turn from God, use this as an excuse to be disobedient or accuse Him of not being affective. 



Many people believe that, due to the “prosperity movement” that has swept all the traditional churches – this scripture is speaking about financial wealth, the fulfillment of one’s goals, dreams and aspirations. The popular interpretation, in plain, is: if we attend church services and do good deeds, the Lord will give us what we ask for. But this interpretation lacks something… It does not address rather or not if the person asking has a pure and righteous heart! After all, scripture does tell us about those that have a FORM of godliness, yet deny the true power of God (2 Tim 3:5). Would Paul have warned us of this if he didn’t realize there would be people that “appeared” godly but their hearts were not pure? I don’t think so!

So what DOES God mean by “the desires of your heart?”  Well, let us take a look at what the bible says:

Throughout the bible, people have wanted things that were no good for them. For example, although God promised Sara he would fulfill her desire for a son, her impatience caused her to move faster than God’s plan and she DESIRED one sooner, so she had her husband Abraham sleep with the Egyptian (Hagar). We are aware of how messy that turned out (Hagar and Abraham’s son was Ishmael which is the “father” of the Muslim religion). Sara’s DESIRE within her heart was not something that was healthy for her and has resulted in a spiritual war that still affects mankind today!

Another example is of David’s son, Amnon. He DESIRED within his heart to have his sister, Tamar, which resulted in him raping her. This is clearly a distorted desire and by knowing the character of God, this would not be something He approved of, let alone would He EVER provide it.

Last, In Acts 8, Simon DESIRES to have the healing powers that he has seen the apostles have. He offers money for it and Peter tells him "Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money"

Side note: This disproves the "prosperity movement," in that, by giving your money to pastors and allowing them to deem it as tithes, so that you can be blessed is sinning against God. Don't you know that God has no dealings in the world's treasures? How is it that you so readily accept their lie that God will provide your needs by offering money to Him? Christ assure you that your NEEDS are going to be provided (Matt6:31&33)! 

Now, back to the desires of a wicked heart vs. the desires of a pure heart. Simon clearly had a desire that was not aligned with the LORD's Will. God would never grant this desire.

1 John 5:14 “And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing ACCORDING TO HIS WILL, he heareth us:” < This scripture clearly tells us that God hears the prayers of those that seek for HIS WILL to be done over their lives.

SO when you hear Psalms 37:4, remember that the scripture begins with "Delight thyself also in the LORD..." Meaning that when you seek to please God, your heart is transformed and will be in accordance to His Will. The desires will no longer be your own but instead will reflect what His perfect understanding and non perishable gifts provide: Peace, Love, Joy, Discernment, and other SPIRITUAL GIFTS!

GOD'S WARNING TO CHRISTIANS

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