Date Archives January 2019

'Ambitious Millennial Christian' Kara

The Christian Faith 7 Comments

Kara as a case study, is a new feature on the blog in 2019. She’s decided to help us in analyzing some matters; she does this by sheer honesty about her life. You’ll be hearing a lot about her ?.
Today, Kara is an ambitious millennial Christian. She has good drive about her professional life. She’s in stride to ensure a good plan up till her retirement years. Kara is a a Christian: she loves the Lord and fellowships at a good bible-believing church. Finally, Kara is a millennial.
Dear Kara is prone to facing a problem that some other ambitious millennial Christians are facing today: using her mind, rather than the Bible, to judge.
She’s curious and often ready to learn; she’s an adherent to the blog post – blow your own mind. For this reason, she reads blogs, books, listens to podcasts and watches documentaries. She’s so used to this that it’s imbibed into her daily routine; she either listens while in transit to work, during her lunch break or as she’s falling asleep. Her mind is growing fertile. We are proud of Kara; she has a growing intellect, emotional perspective and a strengthening will.
Physically: Kara eats well ( we’re so proud of her). Kara goes a notch higher by posting all her healthy eating pictures online (for now, let’s ignore how this is a subtle attempt on her part to flaunt her good outings)
Kara’s body and soul are bouncing. What’s left? Her spirit.
On the mornings Kara doesn’t wake up late, she observes her quiet time. Kara remembers to listen to a message from her bible-believing church every once in a while – once a week. She’s not chanced to go for her mid-week service (except when on leave from work) but she goes on Sundays.
What that does to dear K is make her mind and body more fertile than her spirit. Imagine the daily nourishment on one hand and the average unpredictable nourishment on the other hand.
Consequently, she over-rationalizes homosexuality as a Christian, she permits a level of lasciviousness. She creates ‘Modern Christianity’. Her perspective is but a subjective 21st century skewed lenses.
Kara has an open mind, as it is said, to many matters. She considers the many possible sides and she gives varying worldviews a chance. The trouble here is: Kara’s bible isn’t as open as her mind is.

She judges everything on the basis of her experiences and understanding instead of judging her experiences and understanding on the basis of an unchanging God.
The solution is hidden in the whole exposition. Kara, feed your mind(knowledge-lover? Tick). Feed your body (fit-fam eater? Tick)
Above all, seek God’s Kingdom first and everything would be added unto you(Matthew 6:33).

“For we fix our attention not on things that are seen, but on things that are unseen. What can be seen lasts only for a time, but what cannot be seen lasts forever. 2 Corinthians 4:18″

Change your priority Kara.

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With abundant love,
Debby
Do leave your comments below, we’re interested in learning.

HOMELESS TO HAVARD: the Liz Murray story

Movie Reccomendations 4 Comments

Liz at 15: troubled by a dysfunctional family and homeless.
Welcome to this read.
Liz preferred to go by the name Liz or Lizzie and that’s because ‘Elizabeth’, was what her mum called her when she was slipping into crazy.
She loved her family so much that she baby-sat her whole family especially her mum. In between living in a dingy apartment where the bath tub wouldn’t drain so she she’d shower ontop of an upturned bucket to escape the dirty water, and trying to get whats left of the money her mum hadn’t used for drugs to buy food, she didnt think of school. Liz hated school anyway. She turned up at the end of the term just to write her exams. She dropped out at grade 8. She was the absolute outcast in school. She smelled, she itched.

“my house wasn’t a place you could come out of and be normal”

Its heartbreaking to watch a child cling hopelessly to a drug addict. An addict who would always go back to the same things. Her mum always got taken to a mental institution for her schizophrenia, then released back.
Liz shoplifted a bit, ate in dumpsters, hung out in alleys, and slept in underground train stations.
She nursed the hope that everything would turn out right once again if she just continued to help her mother. When Liz’s plan didn’t work, she got a reality slap in the face.
Liz became her own knight.
She worked hard to get back in school. She studied maniacally and completed four years of high school in two (she didn’t want to end high school at 21 and she’d lost some years already).
She worked hard for an essay scholarship and got it. At the award of her New York Times scholarship, a journalist asked:
Journalist: “Liz, Liz, how did you do this?”
Liz: ” how could I not do it? My parents showed me what the alternative was”.

“I feel I got lucky because any sense of security was pulled out from under me, so I was forced to look forward. I didn’t have a choice so I got to the point where I just thought I had to work as hard as possible and see what happens.”

Likes
I really like the narration Liz did in the background. It worked well with the whole narrative, it gave it solidity and perspective. Her voice held a certain appeal too.
I really like how convincing the acting was. They each acted their part. Sister was detached; Mother was hopelessly addicted and sick; Father was intelligent yet crazily absent in a world of his own, lacked social skills and consumed by AIDS; Friend had lost all hope; and Liz, Liz was passive about her life in a big world until she changed her own story.
Dislikes
We don’t get enough perspective on her elder sister.
Excerpts

“the world moves and in just a sec, it can all happen without you. Situations are not conducive to what you want for yourself, someone else’s need, someone else’s plate is going to be stronger than yours is. Then, people just get frustrated by how harsh life can be and so they spend their life dwelling on that frustration, calling it anger, keeping their eyes shut to the wholeness of the situation and to all the little tiny things that have come together to make it what it is”

The place of family:
I think the best part for me was the relentless optimist and softie she was for her family.
Journalist: “Is there anything else you’ll like to tell us?”
Liz: “I loved my mother, so much. She was a drug addict, an alcoholic, legally blind and schizophrenic but I never forgot that she did love me even though she did all the time, all the time, all..all the time”
Journalist: “Is there anything you’ll change if you were able?”
Liz: “Yeah, I’ll give it back, all of it, if I could have my family back.”
About her mother:

“It wasn’t like she was running off being a good mother to anyone else. She just didn’t have anymore to give”

Production:
Original release date: April 7 2003.
Its an american TV film directed by Peter Levin. Written by Ronnie Kern. Original language: English. Movie length: 1 hr 27 minutes. Thora Birch played the part of Liz Murray.
The movie has been nominated for many awards. It won the best edited miniseries or movie for commercial use -Anita brandt -buryoyne.
Apparently in 2018, another boy goes from homeless to havard: Richard Jenkins by name.
Who should watch this movie? Everyone! For an appreciation of the privilege you have and not to take your security of a decent life lightly. Remember:

“I feel I got lucky because any sense of security was pulled out from under me, so I was forced to look forward. I didn’t have a choice so I got to the point where I just thought I had to work as hard as possible and see what happens.”

P.P.S: Because I’m so hooked on this Liz Murray’s story, I wholly encourage you to read her interview done by BBC.
Because this story is incomplete without the BBC interview version, I insist you read it.
With abundant love,

Debby.

Blow your own mind

Life Diary Other Book Details 4 Comments

Heyyy guys. How are you doing? That you’re here reading again shows you’re taking at least one right step. Welcome back?. Reading is always the way to go. To more books in 2019?.
Early last year, I wrote a post on books: 2018 in books; it was to give you tips for reading better in 2018. Towards the close of last year, I thought to myself: Debby, you’re no longer giving out tips on reading because just how many books are you yourself reading?! (The impostor syndrome post guys). I know people that read double what I read, so what? I have a lesson to share. In that eureka, here I am writing again on the importance of reading (I just can’t help it. It’s from my heart).
I have a whole lot ahead of me in the future, but where I am now, I am grateful for it. To be frank with you, a bulk of it came through reading or other forms of learning. I see people’s reaction in certain instances and I see mine(inserts grave modesty), I ask myself what the distinguishing factor is and I know its wisdom.
I remember seeing a tweet once where someone asked people to comment on the things they were most happy about themselves. One blogger wrote “I’m glad that I’m aware”. Just like that. Aware. Not aware of abc or xyz. Aware. I think that is beautiful. I never forgot since then and I hope to always be aware. Plain awareness is on a whole deeper level. It is a conscious living birthed through a constant desire to learn.
That’s what this post is about- learning by all means.
My guess is I could’ve read an additional twelve books to the number I read last year if I had gathered the time I spent listening to podcasts, audio bible, audio books, Christian messages ( videos included) and turned them on to books. I could’ve. I’m glad I didn’t though. Why? It isn’t about the number of books you cover, it is about the knowledge, and if you can glean it through other sources, by all means go ahead. I had an explosion both reading and listening. Go out on a limb to learn and not just to get to the last page of a book.
The aim Is knowledge, guys. Knowledge. When you know, you are empowered anywhere you go. For Christians, it is the Holy Spirit who breathes on the knowledge(resources) you already have and turns it to wisdom. That’s the secret. Have you read the exchange of the debtor woman in 2 Kings 4: 1 – 7? Vs2:

Elisha said to her, What shall I do for you? Tell me, what have you [of sale value] in the house? She said, Your handmaid has nothing in the house except a jar of oil.

The little jar of oil which she regarded for nothing was the catalyst for her miracle of abundance. You must always have something that can be leveraged upon. So guys, challenge yourselves. Know some more this year, do better in learning by listening and reading. Ask questions, observe. You’ll be richer for it. Awareness will always make the difference.
From the depth of my heart, this is my first message to you in 2019. Read. Listen. Learn. Stay aware. Blow your own mind.
As always,
Love and light.