Wednesday, December 31, 2008
A New Year
They say what ever you do on New Years Day you will do all year...well I am desperately hoping this is not true at all! I am spending New Years Day being sick. :( I just had the most wonderful New Years Eve with friends. It was spent laughing the whole entire time right up to the countdown. I slept perfectly fine...but then I woke up. I am so very puny. I absolutely HATE being sick, in fact I despise it. So I am really hoping this saying is very, very wrong. I would rather not spend my entire year being sick!
Friday, December 26, 2008
Why I Won't Read the Twilight Series
Before anyone reads this post any further I just want to say that this is my position and reasons I will not see the movie or read the Twilight books. I have many very godly friends who read the series and went and saw the movie and I do not have a problem with that.
For Christmas one of my presents was a Brio magazine...after I opened it the first thing that caught my attention were the bold red letters that said " Should You Read the "Twilight" Series?" My dad did not want me to see the movie and I had no idea why. Until I read the article in the magazine called "Twilight's Blood Soaked Romance." The article also helped me realize that I only wanted to see Twilight because a lot of teens are hooked on it. And I wanted to see why so many girls are in love with a vampire in the book named Edward. The first thing I would like to say is that I personally think that love is a lot stronger than what most novels make it to be. A lot of times when I focus on relationships they can become idols, and as a girl I try to picture myself with a Mr. Perfect that I hear of or see.
Melanie M. Cogdill who wrote the article says "No guy can ever live up to the way Stephanie portrays Edward. He's the fantasy creation of a woman writer." I like to put myself in the girl character’s shoes when I read a book...and if I read Twilight I could put myself in Bella's place and end up falling in "love" with a pretend vampire which many girls are finding themselves doing . This book series communicates many messages that are contrary to the Christian faith, and I am not going to be filling my mind with that. A very good point in this article is God should drive our emotions not guys no matter who they are. I think that by reading the Twilight series I could let my emotions control how I feel about Edward romantically, and it could possibly effect how I view godly men in my every day life. Because this series is written by a woman she can make a dream guy such as Edward that could make me end up liking something that is not real. Guys are not perfect they have fallen just like us.
Another good point that I would like to bring out is that everything that is created by man…music, art, literature, etc., somehow communicates the belief of the one who made it. In the book Edward sneaks into Bella’s room every night and sleeps beside her! Then Bella lies to her dad about it which is disrespectful to her parents. Twilight portrays Bella’s parents to be very unaware of their daughter and what is going on in her life. If my parents teach me that lying is bad and that respecting them is a very important thing I should not turn around and read something that says that it’s okay. The book also makes it seem as if Edward is not such a bad guy because he does not suck human blood. There is a question in the article that still has me thinking "Can an evil thing or being ever be good?” If I were to read this would lying and other sins which God despises become less bad to me?
In the fourth book Twilight takes a turn from romance and love to horror and occult. Bella becomes a vampire and gives birth to a half human half vampire child, who tears its way out of her stomach. I know the curse said it would be painful but OUCH! In part of the book Bella's love for Edward blinds her to the value of her own soul. She is so in love with Edward that she assures him that she does not need heaven if he stays, she would rather live eternally with him. Could reading this book make me have similar attitudes towards boys in my everyday life? In the sense that I would be willing to dishonor my parents by doing something for a boy that I know is wrong. The vampires in this series think, that by doing "good" deeds (not sucking human blood) they can some how be saved. If I know that doing good deeds on earth are not what is going to allow me to go to heaven should I really read a book that says it will? The Bible says that no one will enter heaven or go before the throne of God except through Christ.
I find it easy to think that it is no big deal if I want to see the latest movie or read the books everyone else is reading. But if I am commanded to love God with my WHOLE mind should I really be filling my mind with things that go against what the Bible says? If I truly say that I am a Christian I should meditate on things that are heavenly. Reading Twilight is probably not the best thing for me to be filling my head with in order to do this.
This article really made me think. It also helped me realize that my Dad does certain things that I do not think are particularly necessary and that make him seem over protective but he really does know what is best for me. God gave me wonderful parents for a very good reason. So this is what the article says : "Yes, the "Twilight" story is only fiction. It's not the Bible, but Christian readers need to be on guard to discern if spiritual statements in books, films or music match the truth of God's Word. We need to think about what fills our minds. Does it reflect biblical truth? The "Twilight" series does not. Just because the culture loves these books does not mean you should. As Scripture tells us, "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is-his good, pleasing and perfect will" Romans 12:2." I guess what I’m saying is that it is a dangerous thing to allow myself to become so “into” something that I forget to evaluate whether it is good or not. Everything has an impact on my mind…reading different things can change my view of reality. It can change out I interact with the world around me. So I ask myself is what I am filling my head with really going to help me reflect God in today’s world? Am I going to be able to separate my feeling’s from those which are portrayed in fiction novels? Am I going to be able to be a shining light in today’s world if I am thinking about whether or not I fit in with this world? I bet in a couple of years when you mention "Twilight" people are going to either have to stop and remember what Twilight is or people who know every line to the movie and can tell you what happens in all four books are then going to tell you that those books and movies were so yesterday. The things of this world are only temporary, they are NOT going to last so if I focus on fitting in with today's world I am going to miss the opportunity of sharing with people about the greater and better life that is to come.
For Christmas one of my presents was a Brio magazine...after I opened it the first thing that caught my attention were the bold red letters that said " Should You Read the "Twilight" Series?" My dad did not want me to see the movie and I had no idea why. Until I read the article in the magazine called "Twilight's Blood Soaked Romance." The article also helped me realize that I only wanted to see Twilight because a lot of teens are hooked on it. And I wanted to see why so many girls are in love with a vampire in the book named Edward. The first thing I would like to say is that I personally think that love is a lot stronger than what most novels make it to be. A lot of times when I focus on relationships they can become idols, and as a girl I try to picture myself with a Mr. Perfect that I hear of or see.
Melanie M. Cogdill who wrote the article says "No guy can ever live up to the way Stephanie portrays Edward. He's the fantasy creation of a woman writer." I like to put myself in the girl character’s shoes when I read a book...and if I read Twilight I could put myself in Bella's place and end up falling in "love" with a pretend vampire which many girls are finding themselves doing . This book series communicates many messages that are contrary to the Christian faith, and I am not going to be filling my mind with that. A very good point in this article is God should drive our emotions not guys no matter who they are. I think that by reading the Twilight series I could let my emotions control how I feel about Edward romantically, and it could possibly effect how I view godly men in my every day life. Because this series is written by a woman she can make a dream guy such as Edward that could make me end up liking something that is not real. Guys are not perfect they have fallen just like us.
Another good point that I would like to bring out is that everything that is created by man…music, art, literature, etc., somehow communicates the belief of the one who made it. In the book Edward sneaks into Bella’s room every night and sleeps beside her! Then Bella lies to her dad about it which is disrespectful to her parents. Twilight portrays Bella’s parents to be very unaware of their daughter and what is going on in her life. If my parents teach me that lying is bad and that respecting them is a very important thing I should not turn around and read something that says that it’s okay. The book also makes it seem as if Edward is not such a bad guy because he does not suck human blood. There is a question in the article that still has me thinking "Can an evil thing or being ever be good?” If I were to read this would lying and other sins which God despises become less bad to me?
In the fourth book Twilight takes a turn from romance and love to horror and occult. Bella becomes a vampire and gives birth to a half human half vampire child, who tears its way out of her stomach. I know the curse said it would be painful but OUCH! In part of the book Bella's love for Edward blinds her to the value of her own soul. She is so in love with Edward that she assures him that she does not need heaven if he stays, she would rather live eternally with him. Could reading this book make me have similar attitudes towards boys in my everyday life? In the sense that I would be willing to dishonor my parents by doing something for a boy that I know is wrong. The vampires in this series think, that by doing "good" deeds (not sucking human blood) they can some how be saved. If I know that doing good deeds on earth are not what is going to allow me to go to heaven should I really read a book that says it will? The Bible says that no one will enter heaven or go before the throne of God except through Christ.
I find it easy to think that it is no big deal if I want to see the latest movie or read the books everyone else is reading. But if I am commanded to love God with my WHOLE mind should I really be filling my mind with things that go against what the Bible says? If I truly say that I am a Christian I should meditate on things that are heavenly. Reading Twilight is probably not the best thing for me to be filling my head with in order to do this.
This article really made me think. It also helped me realize that my Dad does certain things that I do not think are particularly necessary and that make him seem over protective but he really does know what is best for me. God gave me wonderful parents for a very good reason. So this is what the article says : "Yes, the "Twilight" story is only fiction. It's not the Bible, but Christian readers need to be on guard to discern if spiritual statements in books, films or music match the truth of God's Word. We need to think about what fills our minds. Does it reflect biblical truth? The "Twilight" series does not. Just because the culture loves these books does not mean you should. As Scripture tells us, "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is-his good, pleasing and perfect will" Romans 12:2." I guess what I’m saying is that it is a dangerous thing to allow myself to become so “into” something that I forget to evaluate whether it is good or not. Everything has an impact on my mind…reading different things can change my view of reality. It can change out I interact with the world around me. So I ask myself is what I am filling my head with really going to help me reflect God in today’s world? Am I going to be able to separate my feeling’s from those which are portrayed in fiction novels? Am I going to be able to be a shining light in today’s world if I am thinking about whether or not I fit in with this world? I bet in a couple of years when you mention "Twilight" people are going to either have to stop and remember what Twilight is or people who know every line to the movie and can tell you what happens in all four books are then going to tell you that those books and movies were so yesterday. The things of this world are only temporary, they are NOT going to last so if I focus on fitting in with today's world I am going to miss the opportunity of sharing with people about the greater and better life that is to come.
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Christmas
Christmas with my Mom's side of the family is a lot of fun but really tiring! I got a lot of great presents but I also got to enjoy seeing other peoples faces as they opened theirs. I think my favorite person to watch was Claire, who thanked you for the gift before she even opened it. We get so caught up in getting gifts and seeing who has more that we don't get to sit back and enjoy being together. We also forget why we even celebrate this holiday which is the fact the Christ came down to earth as an infant. Jesus the King of kings left his throne and came down to earth in order to save us, a wretched and sinful people. Does that not just AMAZE you?!? It truly is a beautiful time of celebrating the coming of our Savior. Even though I love celebrating Christmas it is very nice to be done with all the gifts and being busy...until next year. :) Just as a side note,this month for school we memorized Mathew 1:18-23. Reading these verses is a wonderful way to end Christmas Day.
"Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. But while he thought about these things, behold, and angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, 'Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. "And she will bring forth a son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people form their sins." So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,: which is translated, "God with us."
Merry Christmas everyone!
"Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. But while he thought about these things, behold, and angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, 'Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. "And she will bring forth a son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people form their sins." So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,: which is translated, "God with us."
Merry Christmas everyone!
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