Uneasy sleep

I've just returned from a short holiday where I went back to my family. While I was there I went through some boxes of my old stuff. I threw out a few things that I know are displeasing to God. I also packed a box of items with things I no longer wanted. I left this box near the bed and forgot about it.

That night I read from my bible before sleeping. I fell asleep with my bible and my phone next to me on the bed (the bed is a double). The next morning a text message sent to my phone woke me from a strange dream. I reached for the phone and couldn't find it. Sitting up, I was shocked to discover the my phone and bible were hidden...

... by stuff from the box of unwanted items...

... that were most definitely not on my bed when I went to sleep.

Someone had gone through the box and placed a few things on the bed while I was sleeping.

How did they get there? My family had no idea when I asked them. And I most certainly didn't do it while awake. Did I do it in my sleep? Normally if I do stuff in my sleep (such as getting out of bed because I think the roof is caving in) I wake myself up. I'm pretty sure I would have woken myself going through the stuff, if only because the room is crowded so I would have bumped into things. And I probably would have made a mess doing it.

This is weird. I don't like it.

When authorities clash. Issues with submission.

Do not give money to beggars. They are a public safety risk.

Do not give money to beggars. They are a public safety risk.

Do not give money to beggars. They are a public safety risk.

This message was broadcast over the loudspeakers at Melbourne Central the other day, and I was horrified. What does this say about our society when we can't even give money to beggars?

I wasn't happy because giving to the poor is something my God commanded me to do, and it's something I enjoy doing as well. Arguments against it are, "Yeah, but they'll just spend it on drugs." God never told us to judge whether or not we should give based on what they were probably going to do with that gift. He quite simply told us to give.

If there is a poor man among your brothers in any of the towns of the land that the LORD your God is giving you, do not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward your poor brother. There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your brothers and toward the poor and needy in your land. Deuteronomy 15:7,11

He who despises his neighbor sins,but blessed is he who is kind to the needy. Proverbs 14:21

If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. 1 John 3:17-18

These are just a few of the many, many verses about giving to the needy in the bible. The verses on giving cover a number of things, such as the blessings that come with giving, the fact that if you listen to those who cry out in need God in turn will listen to you, and that it is sinful to ignore the cries of the needy. Not once in the Bible does it say, "Give to the needy unless you know they're going to abuse what you give to them" or "Only give to people who don't look like they could be a public danger". We were called to give, not judge then give.

So in my heart I decided that I would give to beggars if they approached me at the station, in obedience to what Jesus commanded. And then later I realised that to do this while knowing my actions went against the authorities at the station was as much as sin to God as ignoring the poor was.

What to do? What to do?

I cannot compromise on God's Word. Therefore, I must submit to authorities unless they contradict God. In this case the authorities went against God's commands, so I feel quite justified in still giving to the poor. And yet I don't want to rebel either. Is there a way to obey God in both without compromising either of God's commands?

Solution? The thing is, giving doesn't necessarily have to be a monetary gift. I can still give, in obedience to God and love to others, while submitting to the authorities God has placed in my life.

So next time, rather than give a beggar money, maybe I'll buy them a cheeseburger =)

There were so many things I could have called this post

Such as You've got your dumb friends, I know what they say or You come over unannounced, dressed up like you're something else or Fall back, take a look at me, And you'll see I'm for real.

Detecting a theme? Let me help you out a bit more.

He was a skater boy, She said, 'See you later boy'

Hopefully now you get it. Well anyway, on Sunday a friend came and told me this:

"Hey, this new girl in my life group, she goes to "insert university here". She said you look like an Avril Lavigne wannabe."

We laughed about it, I pretended to be offended, and I was admittedly a little bit freaked out that some person I didn't even know was making comments like this about me.

Nineteen hours later, when I'm grieving over my hair, it all comes back to me. I was thinking:

Desperado

=

?

And then I thought, "Well, that's kind of cool. Someone I don't even know thinks I look like Avril. And there's worse things I could be likened to. Atleast she's pretty. Wow, some girl must think I'm pretty."

And then it all came crashing down with the realisation:

"Hey! She doesn't think I look like Avril. She thinks I look like I want to look like Avril. She thinks I'm a wannabe =( "

And I was destroyed. Let's face it. Wannabes are not the real thing, and often they look bad (Elvis impersonators come to mind).

On a happier note, a Special Hen gave me a cd. This is one of my favourite songs on it:


Yay! Oh, and for the record, I don't want to be Avril Lavigne. I am a Jesus wannabe (yes, and probably even more of a failure and more hideous than some Elvis wannabes out there).