Thought for Today...

If every time we
loved someone
missed someone
were mad at someone
thought about someone
we prayed for them... how much different would our world be?

Prayer is such a powerful tool...so why don't we make use of it??
If you were trying to screw together an Ikea shelf, and you had a cordless drill laying right next to you (with the right bit in it, even!), why would you use a screwdriver??
Ok, so that may be a bad example (because I'm sure there are times you would use a screwdriver....PLUS it just isn't a good example...) but my point still stands.

I challenge me to pray for those I miss, love, am mad at, and think about.
I challenge you to join me.

How different will your world be?

Abortion...

Something made me sick today...
Yes, abortion makes me sick. It hurts to the depths of my being. It's murder. It's wrong.
But do you know what's worse than abortion???

I'm a "fan" of a page on Facebook called "As a former fetus, I oppose abortion."

Today this group posted a link to an abortion clinic that performs (and advertises) late term abortions. When they posted the link, this is what they wrote:

"What a sick man! He actually advertises late term abortions! Please call his office and let him know how discusting his practice is!"

First of all, I went to the doctor's website. I wanted to see if what the group was saying was true. The doctor talks about his reasoning for late term abortions on his site:

"Patients coming in for very late abortion - over 26 menstrual weeks' gestation - are almost always seeking services for termination of a desired pregnancy that has developed serious complications. This usually means the discovery of a catastrophic fetal anomaly or genetic disorder that guarantees death, suffering, or serious disability for the baby that would be delivered if the pregnancy were to continue to term. Occasionally a woman presents at this stage for pregnancy termination because of her own severe medical illness or a psychiatric indication." (here)

There are currently 35 comments on this post from other "fans" of the page. many of them are people condemning the doctor. People have called his office and called the doctor and all his staff "pigs." The doctor is called "Dr. Evil of Mankind." He's called "Satan Enfleshed," "Sick," "a butcher." People comment on how they want to abort all the doctors who perform abortions.....

Looking at the abortion site makes me sick - thinking about how many babies have been lost and murdered...


...but you know what makes me MORE sick???


How can we claim to be followers of Christ, of the God who IS Love, when we would be so horrible to one of His creation?!?

The doctor is not a believer in Jesus. He has no basis for seeing this as wrong. (Ex: we as Christians would not say it's wrong for women to show their ankles as some religions do. We have no basis for that.To us it is not wrong.)

What this doctor is doing is wrong, but why would he do anything else? How can we expect someone who doesn't believe in the FOUNDATION of truth to SEE the truth?

This man is wrong, but HE is not a sick human - he's just committing sick acts. Jesus wouldn't condemn him or hate him. Is this man's sin any different than the sins we commit every day? We commit gluttony, lust, hate, jealousy, we lie.... but no one condemns us for those sins. No one calls us sick. No one hates us for our sins... In God's eyes ALL sins are equal and deserve death...ALL sins.

Jesus would love him. How will this man change what he is doing unless Christ first reaches him through loving people and changes his heart? Rather than condemning him (and others like him) why don't we pray for him in love?

Love Songs

soooosososoSO many love songs can be songs about/to God... Is this a coincidence? I think not - seeing as our deepest longing is to be in God's love, but our world tells us it's human love.... It makes complete sense...
Think about it...

The Question

There’s a question always ringing.
It’s in my head; pain it brings.
Is it always gonna be like this?
Do I always have to live like this?

There’s a questions burning deep
It is always close, close with me.
Is it always gonna be like this?
Do I always have to live like this?

There’s a question down inside
Buried deep - the depths of my mind.
Is it always gonna be like this?
Do I always have to live like this?

Give me answers, let me know.
All this pain I do not show.
Is it always gonna be like this?
Do I always have to live like this?

The pain you bring,
Do you know how much you sting?
The pain I bear,
Do you know, or care?

This question always ringing…
This question burning deep…
This question down inside…
These answers I do not know…
Is it always gonna be like this?


Brittany Stichter, September 2010

Growing Up...(though some would point out: not literally...) :P :)

SO! Driving down to the pool store: Elmo flying out the window (holding his hand), a teddy bear buckled into the carseat behind me, and a duck each on the antenna and dashboard... YES this is how I celebrate my last day as a child, NO it won't change tomorrow when I'm an "adult"... Welcome to Brittany!! :D :D :D


Yepp. I turn 18 tomorrow... I'm pretty excited, not gonna lie.
Now, I know that it's not some magical day where my life completely changes, and I no longer have any parental authority over me, and I'm free to do whatever I want...

For one, I want to know why our culture gets soooo excited about 18.... for example, what is it about tomorrow that I AM allowed to check out R rated movies at the library (not that I plan to! ...well...unless I find Gran Torino, maybe...) ;) but I'm not mature enough today? I reaallllllyy don't understand the huge difference. I also know for a fact that I won't wake up tomorrow feeling any different (except maybe more rested, since my wonderful Mother is taking my shift at the shop!! :D)...idk. Just seems weird to me.

BUT anyway... As I was driving around, holding Elmo's hand and THOROUGHLY enjoying my ducks and teddy bear, I was thinking about growing up... (yeah, I know, it doesn't exactly seem like I'm growing up much, right?? :P)
I really don't want get all "I'm 18... I'm so amazing and adultish. Plus, I can't play with teddy bears and Elmo balloons, because it's not cool and I might look stupid..."..... that's so sad and boring...
So all the sayings like "you don't stop having fun because you grow old; you grow old because you stop having fun"? I'm planning to live that. While it might be cliche, it seems so true to me...

Mad at God

God is so good. When I was feeling friendless, he brought one of my best friends from when I was younger back into my life.
…then she was moving.
God showed me that I had two other best friends who I hadn’t even thought of.
…they both left for college.

I was upset. I was hurt. I was lonely. Then I realized: I was mad at God.

I had never been mad at God before. I didn’t know how to handle it. I didn’t know what to do.
I was talking with one of my closest friends about it. The night before, I had been told "go ahead and be mad at God. He's big enough to handle it. Be mad, yell at him. He doesn't care." Now today I was told “keep fighting.” …I always thought I wasn’t supposed to be mad at God. I thought I wasn’t supposed to fight God.
The next thing I was told was to think of God as my father. My father….. My father hates it when I’m hurt. He hates it when I am lonely. He wants me to come to him, to look for love and companionship in him. He doesn’t want me to be mad at him, but he’s bigger than my anger. He’s bigger than my pain.
I’m not supposed to fight God, but I’m also not supposed to just give up, never get over it, not learn anything from it,

Anger happens. Jesus got angry. Each and every one of us has heard many times “Anger isn’t wrong, what you DO with your anger is what makes it wrong.”
Angry happens. Getting angry at God… I still don’t know what I think. Anger results from feeling cheated, like you aren’t getting what’s rightfully yours, what you deserve.
God never cheats us. He DOESN’T give us what’s rightfully ours or what we deserve, but we can’t get angry about that: all we deserve is death, condemnation, Hell…


I still don’t know what I think about getting angry at God…
I know I have to chose not to be angry at God anymore.

God will provide the friends I need. He won’t leave me missing something I need.

...when you feel like a complete failure...