Kelly: Picture this; you read something on Facebook about so and so's rant about x topic/place/person. There's a slew of "right on's!" and "you tell them!" and "you're right!" You see a friend of yours crying because they're upset something didn't go right, then a few people gather around, hug them, tell them everything's ok. You work with kids/teenagers and one of them starts throwing a fit, so all of a sudden all of your attention has to go away from everyone who's behaving themselves to the one person who's acting out.
Does any of this sound familiar to any of you? I'm guessing probably so.
So now picture this; you see someone walking down the street, and they're happy go lucky, not a care in the world. You walk on by and let them be without asking. You read something on Facebook about how so and so had a good day. Chances are, you probably just skipped right over it and didn't even think about it.
And now I've probably got you thinking. Have you noticed that in today's world, attention goes on negative attitudes/behaviors? Or is that just me? Has anyone else but me wondered why that is? I'm fairly certain we've touched on this subject before, but it bears repeating, at least I think it does. It's kind of frustrating to me, you know? I think I find it most frustrating because I don't have an answer to the very question I'm posing. Why????? It just seems so backwards. I know it's something I'm guilty of too, and it happens a lot, especially where I work. Some days it seems like all I do is put out bombs caused by temper tantrums, and it really takes away from the time I want to spend praising those for having a good attitude. I'm trying to be more mindful of how I am too and about what I share on social media. Is what I'm posting really going to help someone? Encourage someone? Or am I just using it as a platform to excuse my lack of better word, bitch about something that I have no control over? Just a little food for thought.
Holly: Yes, I notice it. I notice it a lot. Or, on another extreme...if you're positive, "bubbly", or just a good-natured person, sometimes you're asked "what's wrong with you?" Like, why are you like that all the time? I once had a boss tell me I was too nice.
What?
I don't get it either. I mean, from personal experience, the longer I spend time with someone who is just perpetually in a crappy mood, the more I find that I'M starting to get affected by it. I'm turning more cynical, negative. Why do we, or others, find it irresistible to feed into drama, rants, general negativity? I don't get it. Someone please explain!
I too am doing my best to be mindful...hence my 365-day gratitude/thankfulness picture project I'm doing on Facebook (so is Kelly). I know it's not much. But I like to post things on Facebook to encourage, make someone laugh, invoke joy. Positivity! They say nice guys finish last and I just don't think that's true. We should always be kind to one another and build one another up. And one way you can do that, definitely, is through social media. But don't just stop there. Really try to be a positive example wherever you go. I'm working on it every day. Because, truthfully, I'd much rather be told I'm "too nice" than the opposite.
Showing posts with label acceptance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label acceptance. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 25, 2016
Friday, November 28, 2014
Growing up is hard to do
Kelly: As you all know, yesterday was Thanksgiving. I had to work, so as a result we went back to Ohio last weekend to do Thanksgiving then. One of the things I've learned about being an adult in the real world is that sometimes, actually a lot of times, it requires sacrifice. Time away from family and loved ones, and sometimes it involves being away from your family and loved ones when you really really want to be with them. That was me yesterday; driving on the way to work and instead of working wanting to be snuggled up on the couch under the roof I spent 18 years of my life, smelling the aroma of turkey and pumpkin pie while watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade followed by the National Dog Show. Memories. Fun-filled and joyous memories. If there's one thing I've learned though about being away from the home you grew up in is that some people end up finding another home away from home. That's how we are still here in Berea, because this has become our home away from home. And part of finding your home away from home is finding your family, whether or not they are related by blood or not.
One of my "grown-up" lessons I've held onto the past 6 years I've lived here is that no matter what the circumstances, how old you are, or whatever is running around in your head, you should never feel ashamed or uncomfortable to tell your extended family "hey, life is great right now" or "you know, things are just sucky and I need prayer or a hug" or "oh my gosh I love each and every one of you." And when it comes to family, sometimes it turns out they need you too. I don't really know how to wrap this up but with this; I have grown up a lot. Circumstances and changes have somewhat in a way forced me to. But one thing is for sure, in an ever changing world is an unchanging God who gave me a big ol' Earthly family. I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving, and remember to keep thanking God for your many blessings.
Holly: If there's one thing I've learned over the years, it's that most of my "wisdom" has come from my observations of just watching those around me live. I've never been much of a crowd follower, and it really irritates me...actually, makes me sad...that so many my age are still acting like they're stuck in high school. Don't get me wrong, 99% of the time I'm a complete goofball. But what in the world is with all the DRAMA? Still?! If the worst thing that happens in your day is that you're pissed at your parents or someone "told you off", then you still have it pretty well off, in my opinion. I'd love to be pissed at my parents sometimes, even if it meant that I got to spend one more day with them. As it stands now we're lucky to see our folks 3-4 times a year. If that. I don't mean to whine, but it's like what Kelly said earlier: being involved in the real world means sacrifice sometimes. Also part of my "wisdom" is perspective: there is always someone who has it so much worse than you do, and when it's all said and done, we have a lot more to be thankful for than we realize.
I have an amazing support system, serve an amazing God, have the best parents a girl could ask for, a job that I adore, and yes, I'm still single and enjoying that as well. Society thinks female 20-somethings should either be in a serious relationship or married with kids by then. Something else I see so many my age doing is just bouncing around from one relationship to the next...it's almost as if singleness scares them. IT SHOULDN'T. Ok, I've been jumping around a lot, but there is a point to all of this, I suppose: I had someone tell me last night that Kelly and I are admired because of our attitudes regarding our circumstances. Yeah, life is hard sometimes, and yeah, sometimes it's easier to mope and feel sorry for ourselves, but it's a choice: how we feel about it, how we react, despite how we may be feeling. Heck, it's a choice to breathe a prayer of thanks to God for what you DO have despite how you may be feeling. Is it easy? No. No, sometimes it really isn't. But one last thing about growing up is that you do not have to be a victim of your circumstances, and you have the power to choose who remains in it for the long haul.
What are some lessons you have learned over the years?
One of my "grown-up" lessons I've held onto the past 6 years I've lived here is that no matter what the circumstances, how old you are, or whatever is running around in your head, you should never feel ashamed or uncomfortable to tell your extended family "hey, life is great right now" or "you know, things are just sucky and I need prayer or a hug" or "oh my gosh I love each and every one of you." And when it comes to family, sometimes it turns out they need you too. I don't really know how to wrap this up but with this; I have grown up a lot. Circumstances and changes have somewhat in a way forced me to. But one thing is for sure, in an ever changing world is an unchanging God who gave me a big ol' Earthly family. I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving, and remember to keep thanking God for your many blessings.
Holly: If there's one thing I've learned over the years, it's that most of my "wisdom" has come from my observations of just watching those around me live. I've never been much of a crowd follower, and it really irritates me...actually, makes me sad...that so many my age are still acting like they're stuck in high school. Don't get me wrong, 99% of the time I'm a complete goofball. But what in the world is with all the DRAMA? Still?! If the worst thing that happens in your day is that you're pissed at your parents or someone "told you off", then you still have it pretty well off, in my opinion. I'd love to be pissed at my parents sometimes, even if it meant that I got to spend one more day with them. As it stands now we're lucky to see our folks 3-4 times a year. If that. I don't mean to whine, but it's like what Kelly said earlier: being involved in the real world means sacrifice sometimes. Also part of my "wisdom" is perspective: there is always someone who has it so much worse than you do, and when it's all said and done, we have a lot more to be thankful for than we realize.
I have an amazing support system, serve an amazing God, have the best parents a girl could ask for, a job that I adore, and yes, I'm still single and enjoying that as well. Society thinks female 20-somethings should either be in a serious relationship or married with kids by then. Something else I see so many my age doing is just bouncing around from one relationship to the next...it's almost as if singleness scares them. IT SHOULDN'T. Ok, I've been jumping around a lot, but there is a point to all of this, I suppose: I had someone tell me last night that Kelly and I are admired because of our attitudes regarding our circumstances. Yeah, life is hard sometimes, and yeah, sometimes it's easier to mope and feel sorry for ourselves, but it's a choice: how we feel about it, how we react, despite how we may be feeling. Heck, it's a choice to breathe a prayer of thanks to God for what you DO have despite how you may be feeling. Is it easy? No. No, sometimes it really isn't. But one last thing about growing up is that you do not have to be a victim of your circumstances, and you have the power to choose who remains in it for the long haul.
What are some lessons you have learned over the years?
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| Just for fun, here's H and K at 17 |
Friday, August 23, 2013
The Two Greatest Commandments
Kelly: A few nights ago, Holly and I were having an interesting conversation, as is the starter of the majority of these blog posts. As you all know, we are followers of Christ, or at least we claim to be. By the way, if you see or hear us acting not in such a manner, please let us know. Sometimes we are not aware of our own words or actions, am I right? Anyway, in Matthew Jesus answers the question what the two greatest commandments are. Simple. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul mind and strength. The second is like it; love your neighbor as yourself. In today's world, it seems to me we need to go back to basics with the latter.
I've heard before ad nauseum, especially from these other "churches" who say "we love God and He is our Savior, but you all are burning to hell because of xyz." Yes, I'm talking about the latest people population that has been targeted; gays. Now please don't misunderstand me, I am in no way shape or form discriminating against anyone who is gay. In fact, some of my friends are gay and I love them dearly. The question that Holly and I posed while we were having this conversation is can you love God without loving other people? ALL people? My answer? No. I don't think you can. Jesus didn't discriminate against ANYONE, therefore we shouldn't either, whether or not you claim to carry the name Christian. If one is selective about who they want to show love to, then in my opinion you're missing the message that Jesus was trying to carry. But it's not just the gay population that is being targeted, no. Again, like I said, I feel like the world needs to go back to basics. I think some people have just forgotten how to simply be nice. I was reading on Yahoo! news that this family received a letter stating that their mentally challenged young son was a disgrace to their neighborhood and that the parents were shameful for letting him play outside.
Ironically, Holly and I viewed Lee Daniel's The Butler this evening. There was one line that President Kennedy (as portrayed by James Marsden) is watching the TV and footage of African Americans being relentlessly beaten on the streets. He sinks his face in his hands and says "I can't believe that this is my country." Sadly, this is what our country was and unfortunately what our world is becoming. Ya'll, this is the point I'm trying to say; it doesn't matter what your views are on Christianity, gay rights, etc. Just show some common courtesy to ANYONE you meet. You don't know what they're going through.
Holly: We love because He first loved us. ~1 John 4:19
Jesus dying for the sins of the world on the cross- how much more of a powerful way can you say "I love you?' He also makes very clear the two commandments: love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself. Nowhere is there any subtext that says love your neighbor as yourself....EXCEPT if he's gay, black, weird, pink, straight, yellow, male, female, a dog....NO. There are no exceptions. Period.
I've mentioned this in a post or two previously, but I think love just goes beyond love. I believe love also comes with acceptance. Jesus loves who we are, everything about us, flaws and all. I don't think you can love somebody without accepting all of them. Now that goes without saying that you don't have to fully adopt their lifestyle choices- no. That's not it at all. But stay open-minded and be respectful. Eventually you look past all the things that originally turned you off from them and you see them for who they really are; a child of God, a living, breathing human being. If you really think about it, when you boil everything down, we are all essentially the same. We are all created in the image of God. I know I need to remember this when I yell at the questionable drivers I encounter on a daily basis (I have terrible road rage).
I'm caught thinking of Westboro Baptist Church. This is an institution that is supposed to be proclaiming the love of Christ. Instead, they spread nothing but utter hate and ignorance and oppose anything that threatens their little box full of blasphemy that they've sadly put themselves in. They absolutely refuse to listen to any reason whatsoever and they believe they are perfectly valid. I do not consider them a church. I do not consider their members to be Christians. Heck, I don't even know if the life I'M living will be considered Christian when I am judged by God at the end of my earthly life. But it's spelled out as clear as day: we are called to love. And I'm doing my best to do just that. Please let me know if you see me doing otherwise.
I've heard before ad nauseum, especially from these other "churches" who say "we love God and He is our Savior, but you all are burning to hell because of xyz." Yes, I'm talking about the latest people population that has been targeted; gays. Now please don't misunderstand me, I am in no way shape or form discriminating against anyone who is gay. In fact, some of my friends are gay and I love them dearly. The question that Holly and I posed while we were having this conversation is can you love God without loving other people? ALL people? My answer? No. I don't think you can. Jesus didn't discriminate against ANYONE, therefore we shouldn't either, whether or not you claim to carry the name Christian. If one is selective about who they want to show love to, then in my opinion you're missing the message that Jesus was trying to carry. But it's not just the gay population that is being targeted, no. Again, like I said, I feel like the world needs to go back to basics. I think some people have just forgotten how to simply be nice. I was reading on Yahoo! news that this family received a letter stating that their mentally challenged young son was a disgrace to their neighborhood and that the parents were shameful for letting him play outside.
Ironically, Holly and I viewed Lee Daniel's The Butler this evening. There was one line that President Kennedy (as portrayed by James Marsden) is watching the TV and footage of African Americans being relentlessly beaten on the streets. He sinks his face in his hands and says "I can't believe that this is my country." Sadly, this is what our country was and unfortunately what our world is becoming. Ya'll, this is the point I'm trying to say; it doesn't matter what your views are on Christianity, gay rights, etc. Just show some common courtesy to ANYONE you meet. You don't know what they're going through.
Holly: We love because He first loved us. ~1 John 4:19
Jesus dying for the sins of the world on the cross- how much more of a powerful way can you say "I love you?' He also makes very clear the two commandments: love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself. Nowhere is there any subtext that says love your neighbor as yourself....EXCEPT if he's gay, black, weird, pink, straight, yellow, male, female, a dog....NO. There are no exceptions. Period.
I've mentioned this in a post or two previously, but I think love just goes beyond love. I believe love also comes with acceptance. Jesus loves who we are, everything about us, flaws and all. I don't think you can love somebody without accepting all of them. Now that goes without saying that you don't have to fully adopt their lifestyle choices- no. That's not it at all. But stay open-minded and be respectful. Eventually you look past all the things that originally turned you off from them and you see them for who they really are; a child of God, a living, breathing human being. If you really think about it, when you boil everything down, we are all essentially the same. We are all created in the image of God. I know I need to remember this when I yell at the questionable drivers I encounter on a daily basis (I have terrible road rage).
I'm caught thinking of Westboro Baptist Church. This is an institution that is supposed to be proclaiming the love of Christ. Instead, they spread nothing but utter hate and ignorance and oppose anything that threatens their little box full of blasphemy that they've sadly put themselves in. They absolutely refuse to listen to any reason whatsoever and they believe they are perfectly valid. I do not consider them a church. I do not consider their members to be Christians. Heck, I don't even know if the life I'M living will be considered Christian when I am judged by God at the end of my earthly life. But it's spelled out as clear as day: we are called to love. And I'm doing my best to do just that. Please let me know if you see me doing otherwise.
Monday, May 27, 2013
Why is it bad to be good?
Kelly: This has been in numerous conversations between Holly and I. In today's society, now stop me if I'm wrong, it seems to me that the world we live in is very negative orientated. Now what do I mean by that? In my experiences, the stigma associated with being a "good" individual was often looked down upon. In school, one may have heard phrases such as "teacher's pet" or "goody two-shoes." The good behavior in a student was often mocked, while the bad behavior was praised and often overlooked. Bad behavior, such as being disruptive, turning in work late and picking on other students. I, along with sis, was one of the "good" kids. I did my work, turned it in on time, participated when needed and was respectful of the teachers I had. This sometimes resulted in me being the butt of jokes; this also happened in band as well. There was one person in particular who gave Holly and I hell...for no apparent reason. We never did anything to provoke or wrong this person, but that was just the way it was.
I don't know what happened to this person, and I have put behind what has happened and forgiven this person in my heart. But something I will never understand is the fact that everyone seemed to look the other way. Why did nobody stand up for us? Why didn't I stand up for myself? It's not like I was expecting anything like that, but I do wonder sometimes. In today's media, bad behavior is always being reported, and it's often. OJ gets away with murder again, Casey Anthony walks free, and Kim Kardashian is at it again spending millions of dollars to rid herself of a 72-day matrimony. Yet the world we live in EATS THIS UP and young ones, especially girls, look up to people like that and say "I want to be like her!" It absolutely breaks my heart to raise my younger generation in this type of society. So what do we do? I don't know. I don't have a solution. My behavior will not change, that's for sure.
Holly: I'll be honest, because I don't like bragging on myself, but I was pretty much the model child growing up. I did what my parents told me (with the occasional typical grumbling and eye-rolling, of course), I worked hard in school and did well, I always did my homework, I hardly ever went out, I didn't drink, smoke, or party. I'm pretty sure the whole "teenage rebellion" never happened to me. I never gave in to peer pressure, but I'm not saying I was ever tempted. Oh, and listen up y'all, if you've ever heard of peer pressure going away after high school, it's a load of crap. I think it actually gets worse. In high school I was relentlessly called "the smart one", the overachiever, the goody-goody, you name it, I was probably called it. God forbid we ever did the right thing; it was utterly savage.
And to this day it still doesn't stop. I totally killed a work conversation by saying I don't party, and that, no, I didn't get completely hammered on my 21st. It was like I had just admitted to murder. I DREAD conversations like those, because as soon as I open my mouth, even though words are hardly ever spoken, I know I'm getting judged. I hate that. Why does it have to be like that? By my peers I've never been told "hey, good for you and the choices you make". Or don't make, in many instances. I'm the complete and polar opposite of what a 20-something is supposed to be in society: the social butterfly, always going out, hooking up, drinking. Now listen here: I love going out. I enjoy a drink every now and then. I love being social. But you can have fun without drinking, without acting wild and crazy, without threatening your reputation.
I've never been one to follow the crowd. Never have. And I don't intend upon changing anytime soon.
I don't know what happened to this person, and I have put behind what has happened and forgiven this person in my heart. But something I will never understand is the fact that everyone seemed to look the other way. Why did nobody stand up for us? Why didn't I stand up for myself? It's not like I was expecting anything like that, but I do wonder sometimes. In today's media, bad behavior is always being reported, and it's often. OJ gets away with murder again, Casey Anthony walks free, and Kim Kardashian is at it again spending millions of dollars to rid herself of a 72-day matrimony. Yet the world we live in EATS THIS UP and young ones, especially girls, look up to people like that and say "I want to be like her!" It absolutely breaks my heart to raise my younger generation in this type of society. So what do we do? I don't know. I don't have a solution. My behavior will not change, that's for sure.
Holly: I'll be honest, because I don't like bragging on myself, but I was pretty much the model child growing up. I did what my parents told me (with the occasional typical grumbling and eye-rolling, of course), I worked hard in school and did well, I always did my homework, I hardly ever went out, I didn't drink, smoke, or party. I'm pretty sure the whole "teenage rebellion" never happened to me. I never gave in to peer pressure, but I'm not saying I was ever tempted. Oh, and listen up y'all, if you've ever heard of peer pressure going away after high school, it's a load of crap. I think it actually gets worse. In high school I was relentlessly called "the smart one", the overachiever, the goody-goody, you name it, I was probably called it. God forbid we ever did the right thing; it was utterly savage.
And to this day it still doesn't stop. I totally killed a work conversation by saying I don't party, and that, no, I didn't get completely hammered on my 21st. It was like I had just admitted to murder. I DREAD conversations like those, because as soon as I open my mouth, even though words are hardly ever spoken, I know I'm getting judged. I hate that. Why does it have to be like that? By my peers I've never been told "hey, good for you and the choices you make". Or don't make, in many instances. I'm the complete and polar opposite of what a 20-something is supposed to be in society: the social butterfly, always going out, hooking up, drinking. Now listen here: I love going out. I enjoy a drink every now and then. I love being social. But you can have fun without drinking, without acting wild and crazy, without threatening your reputation.
I've never been one to follow the crowd. Never have. And I don't intend upon changing anytime soon.
Friday, April 12, 2013
30 Days of Writing: Something you feel strongly about
Kelly: Freedom, if used appropriately. Now what do I mean by appropriately? Well, take it as a judgment call; if you feel it's a good time to speak up, then do so. If not, then for the time being keep quiet. This is something that I particularly struggle with at times, but it is something I'm doing my best to work on. It's so simple to sometimes just blurt out whatever is on our hearts or minds. Yet we have the freedom to do that...and sometimes that can bite us in the bum. We also have the freedom to choose; how we think, how we feel, what we say or don't say, what we do or don't do, and how we treat others. We also have the freedom to listen or to turn the other cheek and ignore. It's all a choice. We also have the freedom to have our opinions, yes, even if they hurt others. Hence why I feel about using freedom appropriately.
We also have the freedom to accept Christ as our Savior or not. He gave us that choice. Heck, he gave us the freedom for ALL of the choices we have in life. Either way I won't force my beliefs down any one, but I will freely love all people, no matter what race, color, gender, sexuality, or relationship status. I will freely choose to speak words of love and kindness, especially to those who wrong me...because in my opinion they're the ones who need it the most. I will freely think positively of others and do my best to give people the benefit of the doubt; we don't know what burdens the world is carrying at any given time. Simple, but difficult at the same time.
Holly: Love.
I believe that love is one of the most powerful forces on this planet. People do all kinds of things in the name of love. But I think love goes beyond just being nice to people, which we should be doing anyway. Imagine how the world would change if we intentionally did things for other people, not expecting anything in return, but because we ought to love those above ourselves. I think wars would stop from things like this. We aren't on this world to live for ourselves; we're here for God, and for others. It's kind of hard to love others when you have the me-blinders on. Loving people, for me, means putting other people's well-beings, feelings, and needs above my own, but also meeting them right where they are, regardless of my feelings, beliefs, opinions. I believe love and acceptance go hand-in-hand; I think it kind of has to. To truly love someone is to accept them regardless of ALL their flaws, weaknesses, difficulties...I mean, Jesus does that for us every single day.
Some of you may not agree with me, and that's ok. But sometimes I think we get just being nice to people and loving people mixed up. I know I still have a long way to go, trust me on this one. But like I said before, imagine how vastly the world would change if we simply did things for others. Love is acceptance. Love is cooperation. Love is smiling at a stranger, even if you're having a bad day. Love is holding the door for someone when your own hands are full. Love is reaching out to those who are hurting, even if you yourself feel stuck in an abyss of neverending darkness and loneliness. Love is being the first one to say you're sorry. Love is trying to find a way to work through international issues, instead of threatening nuclear missiles at one another. Love is laughter. Love is holding your kitty in the kitchen first thing in the morning.
To me, love wins. It always should.
We also have the freedom to accept Christ as our Savior or not. He gave us that choice. Heck, he gave us the freedom for ALL of the choices we have in life. Either way I won't force my beliefs down any one, but I will freely love all people, no matter what race, color, gender, sexuality, or relationship status. I will freely choose to speak words of love and kindness, especially to those who wrong me...because in my opinion they're the ones who need it the most. I will freely think positively of others and do my best to give people the benefit of the doubt; we don't know what burdens the world is carrying at any given time. Simple, but difficult at the same time.
Holly: Love.
I believe that love is one of the most powerful forces on this planet. People do all kinds of things in the name of love. But I think love goes beyond just being nice to people, which we should be doing anyway. Imagine how the world would change if we intentionally did things for other people, not expecting anything in return, but because we ought to love those above ourselves. I think wars would stop from things like this. We aren't on this world to live for ourselves; we're here for God, and for others. It's kind of hard to love others when you have the me-blinders on. Loving people, for me, means putting other people's well-beings, feelings, and needs above my own, but also meeting them right where they are, regardless of my feelings, beliefs, opinions. I believe love and acceptance go hand-in-hand; I think it kind of has to. To truly love someone is to accept them regardless of ALL their flaws, weaknesses, difficulties...I mean, Jesus does that for us every single day.
Some of you may not agree with me, and that's ok. But sometimes I think we get just being nice to people and loving people mixed up. I know I still have a long way to go, trust me on this one. But like I said before, imagine how vastly the world would change if we simply did things for others. Love is acceptance. Love is cooperation. Love is smiling at a stranger, even if you're having a bad day. Love is holding the door for someone when your own hands are full. Love is reaching out to those who are hurting, even if you yourself feel stuck in an abyss of neverending darkness and loneliness. Love is being the first one to say you're sorry. Love is trying to find a way to work through international issues, instead of threatening nuclear missiles at one another. Love is laughter. Love is holding your kitty in the kitchen first thing in the morning.
To me, love wins. It always should.
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
"But the greatest of these is love."
Holly: I posted this on my Facebook this morning.
I may or may not get some flack for this, but this is truly what I believe:
I was watching the news last night, and it showed a lot of couples (both same-sex and not) walking out of churches, courthouses, etc, holding hands and looking so genuinely happy. When I see things like that, I don't see gender...I see two people who are in love and who can't wait to spend the rest of their lives together. I know what the Bible says, but LOVE is the greatest command of all. Even if we don't agree with it, we owe it to EVERY person our love, our acceptance, and our tolerance. Jesus hung out with people from all walks of life. He never judged, never criticized...he saw them for who they were: a child of God.
Love over hate.
Tolerance over intolerance.
Now, I know a lot of those out there who do not agree with this. And that's ok. I have my beliefs and I will respect them, and I only ask that you please do the same for me. But I think that we are in no place to judge one another's actions, lifestyle choices, relationships, etc. We ought to be supportive of our friends and neighbors, even if we don't agree with the choices they make.
As for me, I am straight, and therefore can't really offer any solid opinions on this issue. But I will say this: I have several gay friends and I love them all so dearly. I see them through the eyes of God, as I do ALL people, and that propels my dire love for people. I urge all of you to do the same.
Kelly: In the world I'm in, we are always told to treat all individuals equally. I could walk into the door of my future work place and treat anyone who comes in; a prisoner, a homeless person, someone who's HIV positive, whatever. If you were in my shoes would you not treat the person with as much respect and compassion as they need, even if they don't "deserve" it? Just because I may not agree with a patient's lifestyle does not mean their care by me will be any different, as it shouldn't be.
Maybe you wouldn't. But I would. And that's not even because I "have" to; it's by my free choice that I do so. So why should these individuals be treated any differently? It makes me so sad that in this country we live in, many individuals are denied seemingly basic rights, in my opinion. I try to put myself in their shoes; how would I feel if I could not marry the person I loved and wanted to spend the rest of my life with? How would you feel? I'm guessing not a lot of people think about that. Like sis said, I don't even see the fact that they're gay. I don't. I see two people who love each other. What also makes me sad is that I have Christian friends who are gay and who genuinely struggle with this. I've been asked "Kelly, because I'm gay does that mean I'm going to hell?" How do you even answer that? I thought that our country was supposed to build people up instead of tear them down. I think with the troubles going on in this country and the world it's the absolute LEAST we can do.
I may or may not get some flack for this, but this is truly what I believe:
I was watching the news last night, and it showed a lot of couples (both same-sex and not) walking out of churches, courthouses, etc, holding hands and looking so genuinely happy. When I see things like that, I don't see gender...I see two people who are in love and who can't wait to spend the rest of their lives together. I know what the Bible says, but LOVE is the greatest command of all. Even if we don't agree with it, we owe it to EVERY person our love, our acceptance, and our tolerance. Jesus hung out with people from all walks of life. He never judged, never criticized...he saw them for who they were: a child of God.
Love over hate.
Tolerance over intolerance.
Now, I know a lot of those out there who do not agree with this. And that's ok. I have my beliefs and I will respect them, and I only ask that you please do the same for me. But I think that we are in no place to judge one another's actions, lifestyle choices, relationships, etc. We ought to be supportive of our friends and neighbors, even if we don't agree with the choices they make.
As for me, I am straight, and therefore can't really offer any solid opinions on this issue. But I will say this: I have several gay friends and I love them all so dearly. I see them through the eyes of God, as I do ALL people, and that propels my dire love for people. I urge all of you to do the same.
Kelly: In the world I'm in, we are always told to treat all individuals equally. I could walk into the door of my future work place and treat anyone who comes in; a prisoner, a homeless person, someone who's HIV positive, whatever. If you were in my shoes would you not treat the person with as much respect and compassion as they need, even if they don't "deserve" it? Just because I may not agree with a patient's lifestyle does not mean their care by me will be any different, as it shouldn't be.
Maybe you wouldn't. But I would. And that's not even because I "have" to; it's by my free choice that I do so. So why should these individuals be treated any differently? It makes me so sad that in this country we live in, many individuals are denied seemingly basic rights, in my opinion. I try to put myself in their shoes; how would I feel if I could not marry the person I loved and wanted to spend the rest of my life with? How would you feel? I'm guessing not a lot of people think about that. Like sis said, I don't even see the fact that they're gay. I don't. I see two people who love each other. What also makes me sad is that I have Christian friends who are gay and who genuinely struggle with this. I've been asked "Kelly, because I'm gay does that mean I'm going to hell?" How do you even answer that? I thought that our country was supposed to build people up instead of tear them down. I think with the troubles going on in this country and the world it's the absolute LEAST we can do.
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