Bible for beginners

Hey everyone! I’ve been thinking about this very post for a while now. If you’re not a Christian, don’t know much about God, and you’ve just kinda stumbled across my blog, I want to let you know I’ve been praying for you and I’m so happy you’re here! No, I haven’t been praying for you collectively as in everyone, but you. My hope when I started this blog was to bring God’s love to those who need it most, and my prayer is that, even if only one person reads it, I can help encourage someone and show them the love of Christ. Through this post and several others to come in this series I want to bring you the most fantastic news you’ll ever hear.

Let’s start at the very beginning (a very good place to start😋). Genesis is the first book in the Bible. The word actually means “beginning” so it’s only fitting that it’s the first book. In the beginning God created everything from the little tiny atoms that make up everything to the huge stars and planets in space. He made light and dark, water and land, animals and plants, galaxies and stars by simply speaking them into existence. Cool right?? I wish I could say something and make it come true like that…I’m really wanting a Starbucks caramel frappuccino right now! Anyway, He created everything including humans: male and female he created them (Genesis 1:27). God created us in his own image. That means basically that we share many of the qualities and characteristics of God himself. It’d be like if you took a flower and painted a picture of it. The painting won’t look exactly like the flower, but it might be similar in shape and color. You’d still recognize that the flower in your painting is the same one in the vase on your table. So God created us to love, experience joy, make choices, and have relationships with one another just like himself. The first people, Adam and Eve, lived in the garden of Eden. The world was perfect and without sin, or wrong choices and bad things. I’d imagine it’d be beautiful. We wouldn’t have to worry about things like broken legs or pesky mosquitoes, or even people hurting other people in any way. God also gave us a choice, though, because he didn’t want to force us to do what he wanted us to do. He planted the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and told Adam and Eve that they shouldn’t eat the fruit from that tree. They can eat everything but that fruit. One day when Eve was in the garden a snake tempted her to eat the fruit, and so she did. She brought some to her husband and he ate it too. Later, when God came to visit them they tried to hide, but could not. God sent them away from the garden because they had sinned and disobeyed him. Of course he didn’t want to do this because he loves his people, but they disobeyed him so he had to. If you would like to read this in the Bible, I’m in Genesis 3.

Since God loves his people, though, he didn’t want them to be stuck in this now sinful world. Much later he sent his son Jesus to save us from sin. Look out for my next post to read about that;)

This is the first in my mini series for people who are interested in the Bible. Leave a comment and let me know what you think! Thank you for reading!

But wait! There’s more!

For more things in this category, check out my other website here.

Kerry in Wonderland—my creative blog

I created this separate blog so I can put up all my creative stuff and keep my focus on devotions on Bloom. Click the link to find all sorts of fun stuff! Hope you enjoy reading it as much I enjoyed making it. See you in Wonderland!

• More recipes
• Painting tutorials
• Great books to read
• Creative crafts
• Poetry
• Short stories
• Photography

Some things lovely

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Everyone knows this simple little line that gives credibility to anyone who finds something beautiful that others do not. In many ways, it is true. Taken at face value it means some people like things others do not. What is beautiful, then, in God's eyes? After all, He created everything with a purpose. Carefully, he paid attention to every single detail when he created creatures as small as a bacteria to things as large as stars. "He counts the stars and calls them each by name." Psalm 147:4 Why would he pay so much attention and put so much thought into something that would be bad? That leads us to this question: what is bad, and what, then, is beautiful?

This rainy day I look outside and see dark grey storms clouds looming ominously overhead, just waiting to pour their blessedly cooling tears over this fried, dead desert. One may see this rain as a horrible curse, and another as a blessing in disguise. At summer camp this year I was slightly disappointed to see many activities like swimming at the lake or our outdoor rec time canceled due to the rain. After a three hour walk in the light drizzle, my griping changed to praise. The same rain that canceled my fun plans forced me to spend time looking at beautiful things. I walked around this lovely camp set in the mountains to discover some gorgeous delicate sweet pea flowers and a simply elegant garden. The sprinkling showers only multiplied the beauty by adding a new clean feeling to the area and the warm smell of fresh rain on grass. I could have sat inside with my headphones and a sour expression on, but by walking and enjoying the cool rain I found something beautiful out of something others might find a nuisance. After it all there was a rainbow in the sky, a symbol of God's faithfulness in His promise keeping. I would have missed this colorful reminder of God's grace if I had stayed inside complaining about what I had no control over. “I establish my covenant with you: Never again will all life be destroyed by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.” And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.”” Genesis‬ ‭9:11-16‬ ‭NIV‬‬

(This is a pic of a rather vibrant rainbow we saw two days ago after it rained)

When someone says something is beautiful, the first thing that comes to mind is probably not something like a thorn bush, a deadly animal, or a person with a disability. God considers these lovely though. He sees every bit of his creation as not only good, but very good. “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.” Genesis‬ ‭1:31‬ ‭NIV‬‬ Many poisonous plants contain properties for some of the best healing medicines in the world. Bothersome molds have provided the cure for bacterial diseases. We view bacteria and mold as inertly bad because it makes us sick, but they are only doing their job. Without bacteria and molds to break things down we would be wading through piles of dead carcasses of various plants, animals, and people. There would be no good, fresh soil for planting, and without certain kinds of bacteria and mold, we would not be able to digest food or make incredible food like cheese! A person may be born with a twisted leg or shortened arm, but because of their physical disability, they may grow and develop something that could change the world as we know it—like a cure for cancer.

Finally, the last bit of beauty to consider is you. Yes, you. A person, a human, is created after God's own image. “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.” Genesis‬ ‭1:27‬ ‭NIV‬‬ He created us each individually beautiful and called us good. Not good if they fixed their nose, good if they could sing well, or good if they lost some weight, but just plain good. God cherishes each and every one of us that he gave us some of His own characteristics to share. To some of us gave the gift of creativity and all that encompasses, to some the gift of wisdom, to others the gift of words, hospitality, encouragement, leadership, and the list goes on. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law." Galatians‬ ‭5:22-23‬ ‭ESV‬‬ and “For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.” Romans‬ ‭12:3-8‬ ‭NIV‬‬ To all he gave the gift of the capacity to love. “But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did.” 1 John‬ ‭2:5-6 NIV And to everyone he offers the gift of His love, joy, peace, hope, kindness, mercy, and goodness. All of us are beautiful in His eyes. His eyes are the only ones that truly matter. Everything was created out of His goodness and mercy, so nothing can be without beauty. Do you believe that about yourself?

Back to school

I know I'm probably in the minority when I say I'm excited to go back to school. Long summer, lazy days in the 120 degree heat, and none of my people around me doesn't usually sound very appealing. I just wanted to leave you with a few thoughts before the school year starts (or before you get too far into it).

As summer comes to a close, it can be hard to swing back into that school zone where you actually have to talk to people. It is especially hard when you're new. For those of you who are not new, remember what it felt like to once be new and use that empathy to help a new student. Nothing boosts confidence and takes away shyness like a friend on your first day. Try to be genuine and gracious, and introduce the new person to as many people as you can. If you're new, I know how difficult that can be. If someone comes up and introduces themselves, don't be afraid to talk to them. Shyness is hard to talk to, though sometimes also hard to quench. Friendships take time, so if you don't have five best friends on your first day, don't be disappointed. Pray and ask God to send you a genuine friend; God will bring you comfort. Never forget He's also he best friend you'll ever have.

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.”
‭‭Philippians‬ ‭2:3-4‬ ‭

“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”
‭‭John‬ ‭15:13‬ ‭

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4:4-7

This year will probably bring several changes: don't be scared of them!! Every year I catch myself hoping I have the same schedule as last year because changing something just sounds unfathomable in the moment. Of course, I am disappointed every year when my schedule comes out, but wind up happy in the end. Different isn't the end of the world; change is going to happen, and happen often it will! Friends will drift apart or move away, schedules will change, teachers will be different, but remember to keep your eye on the one thing that never will change. Jesus is constant and will never leave your side. No matter what happens he is always with you and will always love you…don't you ever forget that! Even through small changes (or things you want to change that don't), He has a plan for you-and it's a perfect one too! His plan is meant for your good no strings attached, though it may not seem like it at times. Hang in there!

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.””
‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭29:11-14‬ ‭

He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” (‭Psalm‬ ‭46‬:‭10‬ NIV)

Finally, keep your mind set on Him and He will not lead you astray. I have read that whatever statement or thought you keep on your mind constantly will become truth to you. If you constantly tell yourself stuff like I'm not pretty, she's better than me, he's not that bad, I'm not good enough, and I'm not nearly as bad as her, those things will become truth to you. If you fill your mind, heart, day, and life with God's truth, you will find a weight being lifted off your shoulders. God loves you, He is with you, He wants what is best for you, and He never gives up on you no matter what you do, what you did, or what's been done to you. Take a minute and read these words from the Bible. Be still and know that you are his daughter (or son). Let these words sink in and bring you healing and joy. His truth will set you free…and you will be free indeed!

“To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” They answered him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?” Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”
‭‭John‬ ‭8:31-36‬ ‭

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭23

‬“But know that the Lord has set apart the godly for himself; the Lord hears when I call to him.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭4:3‬ ‭

“Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭37:4‬ ‭

‬“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4:8‬ ‭