I BELIEVE (Day 4)

Friday, October 23, 2009

Reason # 4 “I believe in God because of the magnitude of space.”

“The nearest star, Proxima Centauri, is about four light-years from Earth. The Milky Way is about 100,000 light-years across, and the sun is roughly 25,000 light-years from its center. The nearest large galaxy is the Andromeda Galaxy, which is about 2 million light-years away. Some galaxies are more than 10 billion light-years distant. There are too many stars for scientists to actually count, but it is estimated that there are on the order of 1x10 to the 21st power stars in our universe. If you write that number out, it looks like this: 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000. Only God can contend with something that big.”

Don Waddell – “Why I believe in God 9 non-biblical reasons”

A light-year is the distance that light travels in a vacuum in one year - about 5,878,630,000,000 miles.

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Psalms 19:1 (NIV)

Sherrie
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
Matthew 24:35, Mark 13:31, Luke 21:33 (GNT)

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I BELIEVE (Day 3)

Thursday, October 22, 2009

Reason # 3 “I believe in God because I cannot comprehend infinity. How do we contend with the eternal, something without beginning and without end?”

“When I stare off into the heavens on a clear summer night, I know that space continues forever and ever and ever. If we could get in a space shuttle and travel at the speed of light for an entire lifetime we would be no nearer the end than we were at the beginning. This is beyond comprehension and forms my concept of what God is – eternal, infinite, and incomprehensible. I am left, then, not to understand Him, but only to believe and worship Him.”

Don Waddell – “Why I believe in God 9 non-biblical reasons”

"Take a long, hard look. See how great he is - infinite, greater than anything you could ever imagine or figure out!

Job 36:26 (The Message)

Sherrie

Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

Matthew 24:35, Mark 13:31, Luke 21:33 (GNT)

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I BELIEVE (Day 2)

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

I have a good friend at church who publishes something that she calls the "Thought for the Day." This is a follow-up from yesterday's thought...it looks like she's doing a series. Enjoy!!!

Reason # 2 “I believe in God because without God we have to believe that something, specifically this universe and everything in it, came from nothing.”

“This is illogical and incompatible with all other observed phenomena in the universe. Even if Darwinian evolution were true, what did we evolve from? When you follow the evolutionist’s theory all the way back to the beginning, there had to be something already existing. Carl Sagan offers explanation that the cosmos is ‘pre-existing and eternal’. I would rather hold with Thomas Aquinas when he writes, ‘That which does not exist can begin to exist only through something already existing.’ Skeptics often asked, ‘Who created God?’ He is the one who is pre-existing and eternal, not inanimate matter.”

Don Waddell – “Why I believe in God 9 non-biblical reasons”

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. …

Genesis Chapter 1

I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

Revelation 22:13 (NIV)

Sherrie

Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

Matthew 24:35, Mark 13:31, Luke 21:33 (GNT)

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I have TOO MANY Unanswered Questions and I BELIEVE...

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

I have a good friend at church who publishes something that she calls the "Thought for the Day." Today's thought really blessed me so I thought I would share.

Reason # 1 “I believe in God because there are too many unanswered questions without God.”

“Every philosophic or religious belief system must answer four questions:

Where did we come from? (Origin)

Why are we here? (Purpose)

How should we behave? (Morality)

What is our destiny? (Afterlife)

My science professors couldn’t answer these questions. My philosophy professors had lots of opinions, but none was compelling. Only the Bible provided satisfactory answers. ‘The Bible is just a book written by man,’ is a popular slogan by people who haven’t studied it very closely. Many intellectual atheists (C.S. Lewis, Chuck Colson, Josh McDowell, Lee Strobel and others) who have seriously studied it have come to Christ and believe that the Bible is exactly what it purports to be, the very words of God, recorded by man but inspired by God. How else would a book written over 1,600 years ago by 40 different authors come to us without contradiction or error? That’s a miracle in itself. The Bible is the most analyzed, criticized and dissected book ever written, yet no one has disproved any of its facts or claims. Every archaeological find has confirmed the facts in the Bible. The bibliographical support for the scripture is indisputable.”

Don Waddell – “Why I believe in God 9 non-biblical reasons”

All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching the truth, rebuking error, correcting faults, and giving instruction for right living,

2 Timothy 3:16 (GNT)

The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth… And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. 'For in him we live and move and have our being.'

Acts 17:24-28 (NIV)

Sherrie

Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

Matthew 24:35, Mark 13:31, Luke 21:33 (GNT)

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Revelations from the Reunion: SIZE-ing things up!!!

Wednesday, October 07, 2009

Last Saturday was my 20 year High School Reunion and it's all I've been talking about for the past few months.

Well the big night came and after I got dressed and took a good look in the mirror, a wave of panic flooded me. First of all, as most people know I DO NOT wear form fitting clothes. As a matter of fact NEWBEIN always teases me about my layers and cloaks that I wear to the gym. I kept looking in the mirror, "SIZE-ing things up" and criticizing every square inch of my body in that RED DRESS. Then it was my goal to be at a total weight loss of 190 pounds in time for my reunion. Just a few months ago I was only 17 pounds away and then life got hectic, I stopped using the Spark trackers and back up the scale I went. I stood there in the mirror for the longest trying to figure out what to do thinking..."I cannot wear this Baby GAP dress out of here and man if I were only at my goal weight". I didn't have anything else to wear or at least nothing else to match my necklace...what to do...what to do???

Just then I got a "YOU GO DIVA-type" text message from NEWBEIN and it was so timely. I began to think about all of the conversations we've had since the SP convention about how much we've learned about ourselves and how we should be thankful for our overall progress regardless of the speed bumps...I mean after all losing 150 lbs. is nothing to sneeze at, plus 50 of those pounds I have lost since my ten year reunion!!! Plus, my friends and classmates from high school NEVER treated me any different because of my weight, they just love(d) plain ole Deondra.

Then I began to think about all of the recent comments from my SP friends and especially the photo comment from SUNSHINE120479 (who looks like a super model). On my 9/13/09 picture she said "This is a gorgeous picture of you. I actually think the weight looks good on you. However, I understand how it feels to want to get to a certain point. Have fun doing it, and keep up the awesome job."

So I threw my shoulders back and said the "DEVIL is a LIAR and his breath stinks!!!" and off I went!

I had soooooo much fun seeing everyone and was surprised by the number of questions I got about SPARK. Most of my classmates and I have been staying connected via Facebook, so whenever I make an update to SP it is published on FB. Some folks said as a result of my posts they've been motivated to make some lifestyle changes and some are now fellow SPARKERS....


Now here's the kicker. The Sunday after my class reunion, the pre-sermonic hymn which was led by the gifted Jocelyn Clayborn was "Perfect Peace" by Kris Pringle (such a beautiful song). Which talks about how God makes a way out of no way and that He's the keeper of my soul...whew!

Then Pastor has begun a series entitled, "Christ for Clunkers". Sunday's topic was "Overcoming an Inferiority Complex" (Luke 19:1-10 GNV). Perhaps, you're thinking....Dance, what does this have to do with your reunion??? I'm getting there...LOL!

Well in this story about Zacchaeus, this is the only place in the Bible where size is mentioned. In verse 3 he is referred to as "a little man". Pastor built on this scripture and talked about how having an inferiority complex because of one's size or any "weakness" that we're obsessed about can stop you and cause you to become debilitated. Over the course of the night at my reunion, I lost track of the number of folks who almost didn't come because they were self-conscious that they had gained weight, loss hair, lost weight, lost a job or whatever. And the fact is no one even cared about it, we were all just so glad to see each other.

Anyway, here are the other points from Rev. Cosby's sermon:

~~~How to Overcome an Inferiority Complex~~~

I. SELF CONNECTION: Don't compare yourself to others instead, reconnect with yourself. To be DIFFERENT is not to be DEFICIENT.

II. SOCIETAL CONNECTION: Get busy with helping someone else...in other words SPREAD THE SPARK (Okay, Rev. Cosby didn't say that...I'm paraphrasing here...LOL)!!!

III. SPIRITUAL CONVERSION: Work on fulfilling your God-given purpose.

So if you ever find yourself in a position where you are second guessing yourself...as you are "SIZE-ing" things up ALWAYS REMEMBER....

"For as he [she] thinketh in his heart, so is he [she]..." Proverbs 23:7a KJV

"I will praise thee; for I am fearfully [and] wonderfully made: marvellous [are] thy works; and [that] my soul knoweth right well." Psalms 139:14 KJV


Anyway, I always say a picture is worth a thousand words. So, for those who are on FB you can see all 97 (yes I said 97) photos of the class reunion by clicking on the attached link.

www.facebook.com/D710Dance?v=photos&
ref=profile#/album.php?aid=2014798&id=
1535315055

And for my SPARK Buddies here are some of the highlights from the Reunion...ENJOY!!!


This picture reminds me of how OCD-ish I was in high school. Every night I had to re-do my nails to match my jewelry and outfit for the next day! LOL :D


My Before Alter Ego Photo. This picture reminds me of my Senior Prom. One of my friends and I wanted our classmates to think that we looked extra pretty Prom Night, so we agreed to wear our rollers to school and no make-up. Yours truly was the only one who showed up in rollers....PLEASE DON'T even ask me what I was thinking about????


My After Alter Ego Photo


Last photo before the retirement of the golden pseudo-stilettos!!!


One of the Class Superlative Photos, I was voted "Most Likely to Succeed"


Here's one of the members of the planning committee, the night before the reunion DIVA Daveana provided me with the menu so that I could "SIZE-up" my SP nutrition tracker.


According to Missy and Becky we were attempting the Paris Hilton pose!!!


Two of my "Partners in Crime" from back in the day...LOL!


Another good buddy...he hasn't changed a bit...still handsome as ever!


Don't let the RED DRESS fool you, I'm still a diehard AKA...Pink and Green all the way!!! ;)


This is the infamous Freddie of the "Freddie Stolen Lunch Story" from 5th Grade...thanks for forgiving me!!!


These are my good friends Dion and Angie, they've been married for 20 years...did they get married at graduation? LOL! Anyway, Dion and I were in homeroom together all four years. Bless his heart, he always let me practice my class officer campaign speeches on him. I guess it worked because I was a class officer all four years and was the President our Sophomore and Senior years.


Our group picture....well kinda sorta!!!

And I believe these last two pictures speak for themselves...hey you know I had to get my cardio on!!!

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