Living life as a Chameleon

Jackson: at the beginning

How often do you change who you are to fit the people you are with? It's so much easier, isn't it, to change your personality, just for a little while, to be cool, be liked, to be admired. And yet, we're not being true to ourselves. 

I'd like you to meet Jackson, and he's great at this. He moves into a new background and just changes to suit it, so much so if you look away, you can't recognise him, he's no longer what you expect him to be. 

Yes, you guessed it, Jackson was a chameleon we (briefly) had as a 'pet' in Uganda...until  we wandered off back into the bush. But, the point of this example remains the same, how often are we untrue to ourselves, our core beliefs just so we can fit in?

Jackson: just over 1 hour later (and a good few minutes of searching)

I know I'm prone to it. I tell myself that it's okay when someone jokes about my beliefs (I mean, they're only joking - right?) That I'm not hurt when someone insults my rather uncool interests, because, knitting doesn't really define me....

But, if I lie to others about the little things, get used to hiding the things I deem 'uncool' what is to stop the little things getting bigger and bigger and it leading to me hiding major parts of myself. How is that 'living'?

So, I ask you, do you agree with this quote, and if you do you need to change your life? 

 "It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for what you are not."

Andre Gide 

Prayer: just a list of 'me' requests?

Bear with me on this one. (Please)

So, over the weekend I ended up watching a load of Disney songs on youtube with my little sister and this one really hit home, so sit back, relax and watch it now :)

What stuck me as I watched this, is Esmeralda's prayer compared to the other character's portrayed. And I wondered, how often do I present to God a list of my requests, compared to how often do I intercede for others in my prayers?

I'm not saying that I shouldn't ask for things, The Lord's prayer is quite clear that I should. But, what I wonder is, how often do I pray for the other parts of The Lord's prayer? Because, it that's how Jesus told me to pray, surely I should pray into all parts of the prayer, rather than just my daily bread. How often do I praise God, how often do I ask for his will to be done on earth, for his Kingdom to come, for people to recognise that he is God?

Honestly, not as much as I'd like.

So, I challenge you, pray into The Lord's prayer as you read it, make it your prayer, rather than words that get repeated (mindlessly if your me.) Breathe your life into words that may have lost their meaning to you.

Our Father, which art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come.
Thy will be done in earth,
As it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,

The power, and the glory,

For ever and ever.

Amen.

God, Dinosaurs and Kangaroos

It's safe to say that it was Charles Darwin's book, The Origin of Species, that started off the creationism vs evolution debate, a debate that continues today and will probably keep continuing, because let's be honest we're never really going to know the answers. 

So, why am I writing this, partly because I don't really know what I believe. I know staple facts. (And yes, I'd say that God created the world is a staple fact - at least to me) but the ins and outs of this creation, I don't know. I'm not totally against either idea, and I think they can both co-exist. 

I started to think about this whole issue yesterday after reading a slightly out of date news article on the Dawkins v Williams debate (click here to read it) and then later on (whilst procrastinating on facebook I found this graph, I have no idea if it's legit, but it got me thinking about what I believe and why.

Copied directly from: www.gallup.com/poll/155003/Hold-Creationist-View-Human-Origins.aspx

From these two bits of information, it got me thinking, that many people believe that theory of creationism, the theory of the big bang and then evolution aren't opposite theories, but one (the big bang theory then evolution) is just an explanation about how God created the world. And mean, God just states an order about how he created the world, which the evolution theory follows.

Many people have a problem with Dinosaurs not being mentioned in the bible, I don't, because lets be honest Kangaroos aren't mentioned either and I've seen and stroked one and I know for a fact they are real. As are bacteria, and yet again they aren't mentioned. So, I wondering, if God didn't mention them, does this argument really matter? I mean, I believe God created this world - it's too amazing not to have been created - but do I really need to know the ins and outs of how he created it? Probably not, I just need to admire his immense power and imagination in creating such an amazing world. Because, realistically, I'm never going to understand how he formed the world even if he sat me down and talked me through it. It's only ever going to blow my mind. 

So, what do YOU think?

Spiritual Pampering

Yesterday I helped out at a craft afternoon, where the students held a pamper room, and it's amazing just how a little bit of nail varnish can make you feel better - especially when someone else wants to paint your nails for you. (Sorry boys.) 

 So, as a little bit of nail varnish makes women (well me at least) feel better about my physical self, I thought I'd share a couple of bible verses that make me feel better about my whole self.

"Since you are precious and honoured in my sight,

and because I love you."

Isaiah 43:4

"For you created my inmost being;

you knit me together in my mother's womb.

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

your works are wonderful,"

Psalm 139: 13-14

Too far to fall

As I cycled home from Uni, I decided the sensible way to cross the road to my house would be via the zebra  crossing. Unfortunately my bike decided to stay on the road and well, we both landed on the floor. As I got up, and did the embarrassed look around, I realised that it had been a long time since I had fallen over and a scene from 'The Duchess' came to mind.

After one of the Duchess's girls has fallen over, Lady Bess remarks: "Up and down, up and down. Why can't we recover like that?" To which Georgiana replies "It's too far to fall now."

And she's right, how often before we start something new do we consider the consequences rather than jumping straight in and risking failure - a fall? As a child I'd be eager to put my hand up and answer a question, more excited about being picked then whether I was right. But, now I have to know I'm right before I even consider answering. And I wonder, does this attitude of not wanting to take the risk affected my life in other ways, am I too afraid of falling to take the risk of ending in a better place?

I know it's true in my faith, I like the pattern of reading books I've read before, and know I agree with, I don't like to be too challenged in my faith. But, there have been times when I have been, like when I discovered the true value of the Holy Spirit and then God's grace, and I wouldn't turn the clock back on that change if I had the chance.

So, I ask you, what have you turned your back on because you're too afraid of the answer?
And if you have turned your back on something, is it something that other people value, like having a faith. And if you did, is it time to re-examine it? Find out why. Because somethings in life are too important to ignore, and I say religion is one of those things.

How much is £7?

Seems a daft question, but just how much is £7? I mean, if I went to a supermarket I could get a small shop for £7, or I could spend the money on a DVD or a book, or if I was really lucky it would pay for a meal out. But, £7 isn't that much, I mean I couldn't live off it. 

But, 80% of the world's population lives off £7 or less a day. How is that right? When I'm willing to spend £7 so easily, and yet for some people they have to live off it.

Don't believe me? 

Image taken from: http://www.globalissues.org/article/26/poverty-facts-and-stats

It's crazy, but do you know the reason why? Because you and I are rich - we are in the richest 20% (at least) of the world population, and us rich people we account for 75& of the global income whilst the lowest 40% of the world population accounts for only 5%? 

Can't get your head round it? 

Here are some other horrifying facts:

• There are 2.2 billion children in the world of which 1.9 billion live in the developing world and 1 billion are in poverty. 
• The best way out of poverty is by getting an education, and yet 121 million children aren't in education.

And if that isn't bad enough:

• 640 million children are without adequate shelter,
• 400 million children have no access to safe water 
• 270 million children have no access to health services.
• and the worst roughly 29,000 children die every day.

And there was me thinking that a day in labs was bad, and yet I have been able to come home to clean water to make a pot of tea, biscuits to dunk in it and the chance to relax. I'm incredibly lucky to be doing a degree when so many children don't even get a basic education, and yet do I value my education as much as I should? Do I value the luxuries of my life or do I take them for granted constantly asking for more and more and not considering the consequences. The richer the rich will get, the poor will just get poorer. And yet isn't that what life is about? Building riches up on earth and not caring for others?

And if that really is what life is about, is that life you want?

I know I don't.

Please comment and/or discuss

And the facts were taken from this website and all seem legit, at least they have a huge pile of sources.