Day 19

     Friends are people you enjoy spending time with. They influence you and encourage you. But are they encouraging you to do the right things?
     Though they might be fun to be around, if they aren't encouraging you to grow in you faith with the Lord, they're not helping you at all. If you surround yourself with friends encouraging you to go down the wrong path, you will begin to drift away from God, no matter how persistent you think you may be. That doesn't mean you need to cut off your other friends completely, just make sure you have some friends who guide you the right way. Who is holding you back from your spiritual potential?
-N

Update: A friend of mine, K, recently donated $10 to the Sudans. We are now up to $51! Thanks K!


     Have you ever thought of the ways we could change the world if everyone, or at least every Christian, tried? Have you ever wondered how you can help? N and I have wanted to change the world for a while, we've wanted to do something about the problems, but we didn't know how, or what, we could do. We would get into these intense conversations about it. The conversation would last a while, and it was hard to drop once it was started. It came up multiple times. We knew we wanted to do something big, like with Kony or building wells, a lot of Africa stuff. We would write down ideas, speeches, even logos, but always felt like we weren't doing anything. It was hard to get anything going, ideas changed, and we knew it would be hard getting support considering that we're "just" teens, early teens at that. We wanted sooo badly to do something, but nothing seemed to spark. Finally, something started catching fire. N and I were making jewelry in my room to raise money for African charities. Read the rest of that on the second post on Day 15.
     The flames have only grown. We've raised $51 for helping the Sudans, and we know that more is to come. Sometimes, I can hardly believe 2 teens raised $51 in less than a month, mostly off jewelry and donations. Only God can do that, and it makes me so excited!
     You can help. It doesn't have to be the Sudans, it might be, but it doesn't have to be through us. God can do anything, use anyone. Even a "kid". We are the next generation, the future of the world is in our hands!(to some extent, but God controls it all) So what will you do with it? We have the power to make things happen, good or bad, for better or for worse. Will you act now, or wait a while, which can turn into a long time? Will you do something, big or small, or nothing? Will you reach out, or take away? Will you help others, or make others help you? We can do anything! We are the children of God! But it's still your decision. What will you decide?
     I've made my decision, but it's not all up to me (though I'll admit, many times I wish it was). You have a choice. So, will you do something about it, or sit back and let God do all the work? He doesn't need our help, He made the universe! But you'll be missing out on something amazing. And I don't know about you, but I'm not missing a thing. down
                                                                                                  -T
   
Another Update: We're now up to $53 because I bought some earrings today. They were just so adorable, I couldn't resist! And it brought up the thought of more money going to Africa, so how can you say no to that?
-N