Tuesday, January 28, 2020

Faith Is Being Sure Of What We Hope

Faith Is Being Sure Of What We Hope Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is a big part of believing in God and even life itself. We have faith in everything from a car not stopping in the middle of the interstate, to the roof on are house not toppling down on us as were sitting on our couch. We dont personally go and check every bolt and screw on an airplane before we let a stranger fly us through the air. This is because we have great faith in the airplane and the pilot. To have faith in God isnt a reward we are given by how much time we read the Bible or by how much we go to church. Faith is a gift from God. We are given faith by believing that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God. Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.(Hebrew 11:6) To have faith we also have to obey God. Our inner attitude does not define faith alone. (James 2:17) In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. (James 2:19-24) You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that- and shudder. You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the alter? And the scripture was fulfilled that says, Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness, and he was called Gods friend. You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone. A person is justified by deeds only by man; because man cannot see our faith. Our faith is justified by God. Our deeds do not save us, but they are the evidence to our saving faith. If we could save ourselves by deeds, Jesus has not done any help for us. Faith saves us and faith alone. (Ephesians 2:1-2) For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are Gods workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. The disciples had great faith and sometimes we desire to have faith like them. Since we have not seen Jesus and still believe we have greater faith. Because you have seen me you have believed, blessed are those who have not yet seen but still believe. (John 20: 29) People that have seen Jesus and believe will not be punished, but that the people that have not seen Jesus and still believe are blessed. By having faith and believing in God we will have everlasting life. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.(John 20:31) HOW TO GET FAITH? To get faith we have to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and we will get the gift of faith and have life in his name. Faith can also come through the message through the word of Christ. (Romans 10:17) Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ. Sometimes we will have a problem believing that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God and that he died on the cross for our sins. We should then, fill are selves with Gods word and meditate it with our heart. To do this we should read the Bible. We will soon realize that Jesus is the way the truth and the life.(John 14:6) Once we become a Christian and have great faith, we can compare our life to what it used to be without God and we can see that the struggles were harder when we did not have God leading us through them. We know that our faith will not always stay at the same level. (2 Thessalonians 1:3) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.because your faith is growing more and moreà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. We can pray, study the Bible, go to church, and serve God. These things will not give us faith, but they can help us grow in our faith. We should always continue to praise the lord as a sacrifice! (Hebrews 13:15) We should continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise. This will also help us grow in Faith. Sometimes we get caught spending all of our time shopping, cooking, and even work. This will consume all of our thoughts and God will be slowly pushed out of our lives, then when we have a problem we will go to God and use him to help us with our problems but we will never think to give thanks to him. You should spend most of your time reading the bible, praying to God, and thanking him for everything he has given us. Jesus died on the cross for us and has given us some very great things; the least we could do is thank him for the stuff he has given us and praise him with all we have. If we have done some really bad things in our life and dont think that God would ever forgive us or even love us anymore, think again! God will always love us and forgive us, no matter what we have done. We could be the ones not honoring our mother and father or have even murdered someone, but they are both sins, both having consequences. Everybody sins and if we just ask for forgiveness and believe, we will have everlasting life and your journey with the Lord will continue in the right direction. When we accept God into your heart, our life will not be perfect. It does have great things that come with it though! If we have struggles in our life that you think will never go away, we can pray to God and he will help us through it. When a problem comes up and we have nothing left, we can always count on God to be there for us! God is the one that we will always need and the one that will always love us! To know God will always forgive and love us, should give us the courage to love and forgive our enemies. If we are striving to go in the right direction and want to live our life praising, and serving God, the door will always be open. To ask Jesus Christ to be in our life is easy but it will be the biggest decision we will make in our whole entire life. God has led me to do many things that will help his kingdom grow and they were things I never thought of doing, but through faith I did it and I was rewarded. Faith is a big thing in everyones life, I encourage everyone to go out and do the thing that God is calling you to do. This thing might be very hard to understand or you might not trust that he will get you through it but God has a plan for us and he will guide us through it and reward us for what we have done. We need to use faith and trust in God as we take these steps into the right journey. DOUBTS Doubts are when we are skeptical about something or have undecided feelings. Doubts can come running in our life at a bolting speed, and will compete with everything for are attention. Sometimes we can be drowning in doubt until something reassures us of our faith. (Proverbs 3:5) Trust in the lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. If we are a true Christians and human beings, we will experience doubts. We have not seen Jesus therefore we will have doubt. There will be a point when we hit something that will make us decide between faith and doubt. This will help us grow in Faith. In the Bible there were people that had not believed in Jesus until they had seen him. Thomas did not believe the other eleven disciples when they had said (John 20:25, 27) we have seen the Lord. Thomas said Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it. Jesus then came in through the locked doors and said Peace be with you! Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe. Doubts arent always a bad thing though. Doubts can help guide us through our journey with God. When we have doubts we might not think that we will still have everlasting life in Heaven, but doubts can help us have greater faith in the long run. When we doubt we will ask more questions to find out everything we want to know. We will learn why God is the answer and why the other theories have no way of being possible. We will also start reading the Bible more and going to church more so we reassure are faith. Doubts dont mean youre not a Christian or that you dont have faith, it just means that you doubt because we believe in God and he is unseen! Doubts are normal in life. Its hard to build so much faith up of something that we have not seen and not knowing if its going to be true until we see it, but we need to believe and trust in the lord. Have you ever got caught thinking Maybe God isnt real. Or maybe Is it to good to be true? or How could God have done this? But the truth it is a great thing that God made this Universe. If we think about it God Is REAL because who could have made this Earth? Who could have made us? It had to be someone so great just like God. Sometimes we even doubt because we have prayed and what we prayed did not go are way or we got hurt by a loved one dying. God disciplines us because he treats us as sons- everyone has had discipline. God disciplines us for our good, it is painful at the time but later you have a harvest of righteousness and peace for us if we are trained by it. (Hebrews 12:7-13) Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness no discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousne ss and peace for those who have been trained by it. Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. Make level paths for your feet so that the lame may not be disabled. Sometimes we will pray to God, testing him so that we can believe. We will tell him God if you let me get a job promotion or get on the high school basketball team the next day then I will believe. When that doesnt happen it does not mean God is not real or doesnt answer prayers, it just means that we want the job promotion or the high school basketball team more than we would love to believe in God. God is not a person that will hand us things when we so desire, but does answer our prayers. (Jeremiah 33:3) Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.He also promises to answer are prayers. (Isaiah 65:24) Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear. Once we see beyond the image of God giving us what we wish for, his word promises we have confidence that we will receive anything we ask for. (1 John 3:21-22) Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anyth ing we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him. God is not a force that is just someplace. God is everywhere and he is a God that is personal with us and he is the spirit. He cares for us and he knows us all and even the number of hairs on our heads. (Luke 12:7) Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. It is easier to realize that God is real when you know that he is not a fairytale or a force; he is the spirit. THE END Life is an experience of living. We have two lives. One is where we are born from a human being on Earth and the other is when we die we will be born again and we will be sent to Heaven to be with God. Here on Earth we have troubles mentally, physically, spiritually, and many other ways, but in Heaven it is perfect. (Revelation 4:1-3) Heaven is where God lives. It is where God is on his throne and is the full and complete expression of Gods kingship. Heaven has no pain, sorrow, deaths, crying, or sadness. In the Bible there is not a lot of information on Heaven is going to look or be, we just know that it will be a perfect place! We can only imagine what Heaven will be like, but God has way better plans then we could ever come up with, or even imagine. If we saw a mansion we would deliberate that the houses in Heaven will be three times as big, but that is not what they will be like because it would not be superior enough. Heaven is a reward for those who overcome everything in the life we are living. (Revelation 3:21) Heaven offers rewards for those who overcome in this life. To get to Heaven we dont just live life, we have to believe in God as were living! (John 3:16) For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life. One of the many immense things about Heaven is there is never a time when God runs out of rooms. (John 14:2) In my Fathers house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. God does not send only the best people, that have greater faith, or the ones that have done better things, he will send everyone to Heaven that believes in him.

Sunday, January 19, 2020

Free College Essays - Character Analysis in Silas Marner :: Silas Marner Essays

Character Analysis in Silas Marner Silas Marner: Silas is the main character and protagonist of the story. When shunned from his town and church after being falsely accused of robbery, Silas is forced to migrate to another town, Raveloe, where he lives as a hermit weaver. Soon his small fortune of gold becomes an obsessive endeavor. The monotony and repetition of weaving helps Silas forget his old, unpleasant life, leaving him with nothing but his gold. This all changes, however, when a blond-haired girl finds her way into his home and heart. Squire Cass: The Squire, father of four sons, including Godfrey and Dunstan, is the good-natured owner of the Red House. Mr. Cass is intent on keeping his family legacy intact and therefore is very demanding on his sons, who never seem to live up to his expectations. Godfrey Cass: Godfrey is the first-born son of the Squire who eventually marries Nancy, his life-long sweetheart. Before this marriage, however, Godfrey fathers another child in a secret marriage to Molly Farren. This child, Eppie, is eventually found and brought up by Silas Marner, who knows nothing of her family history until the end of the story. Dunstan Cass: Dunstan, "a spiteful, jeering fellow who seemed to enjoy his drink the more when other people went dry," is the second-born son of the Squire who always finds himself getting into mischief. Eventually he steals Silas Marner’s two sacks of gold and soon falls into a stone pit filled with water, drowning and leaving his body and the gold hidden for sixteen years. Nancy Lammeter: Nancy is the wife of Godfrey but doesn’t know about his secret marriage and child until long after their wedding day. Eppie: Eppie is the golden-haired daughter of Godfrey who is raised by Silas from the age of two. She is the true joy of Silas Marner’s life, and sees herself as his daughter. Eppie replaces the weaver’s obsession with gold and brings him back to a socially active life. Mrs. Winthrop: She is the neighbor and friend of Silas who teaches him how to care for Eppie. Mrs. Winthrop, though not very sophisticated in her speech or knowledge of religion, persuades Silas to trust in God no matter what happens to him, good or bad. Aaron Winthrop: He is the son of Mrs. Winthrop and the eventual husband of Eppie and son-in-law to Silas.

Saturday, January 11, 2020

An Adventurous Attitude was Characteristic of Roosevelt

â€Å"It is common sense to take a method and try it,† explained Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933. â€Å"If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. † This adventurous attitude was characteristic of Roosevelt, who in his four terms as President, made boundless efforts to end the Depression of the 1930s, and to turn back the Axis Powers in World War II. Depression-stunned Americans first elected Roosevelt to office in 1932, after he promised them a new deal for American people. Roosevelt plunged into the Presidency determined to restore American confidence, because he felt that he national government had the final responsibility for the people†s welfare. Between March and June 1933, known as the First Hundred Days, Roosevelt easily persuaded Congress to create a series of New Deal agencies to combat the Depression. The agencies formed included the Civilian Conservation Corps, Federal Emergency Relief Administration, Agricultural Adjustment Administration, Tennessee Valley Authority, Farm Security Administration, Home Owners Loan Corporation, and following months brought the creation of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Also enacted during the First Hundred Days was legislation such as the Emergency Banking Relief Act, and the The Civilian Conservation Corps was created to put jobless young men to work in state forests and parks, planting trees, and constructing roads and erosion-control dams. At its peak, 500,000 men between the ages of 18 and 25 were put to work by the Corps, and a total of 2. 5 million had seen service The most pressing problem facing Roosevelt when he took office was to aid the 13 to 15 million unemployed workers and their families. The Federal Emergency Relief Administration was created and given a $500 million ppropriation to provide food and other necessities for the unemployed. FERA led to the creation of the Civil Works Administration, which put millions of unemployed workers back to work through $900 million worth of maintenance and repair of local facilities, such as schools, airports, and sewage systems. The CWA was soon absorbed by the Public Works Administration, which concentrated on construction and conservation projects. To improve the situation of the American farmer, Roosevelt set up the Agricultural Adjustment Administration, whose solution was to boost farmers† ncome by reducing the number of crops. Farmers who agreed to limit their output of staple crops were given payments by the Administration. As the supply of crops decreased, farm prices increased. In three years, farm income increased from $5. 6 billion to $8. 7 billion. The Tennessee Valley Authority was created to develop the largely untapped resources of the Tennessee River and its tributaries. The purpose of the TVA was to control the river†s destructive flood waters, improve its navigational facilities, and produce low-cost electrical power for the surrounding area. Flood waters were contained through the construction of 32 dams, which opened up large tracts of land for agricultural and industrial use. Cargo shipping was increased by over 70 times the previous amount through constructing locks in 9 dams, which enlarged and deepened the channel, and encouraged the construction of port facilities. The TVA has also conducted an effective forestry program, replanting eroded timberland, and exploring new methods of fire prevention and forest management. The Great Depression caused more than two-fifths of the nation†s farmers o lose their farms, and become tenant farmers. To halt the decline in farm ownership, the Farm Security Administration was set up to provide low-interest, long-term loans that would enable tenant farmers to buy and operate their own farms and retire worn out land from use. The FSA also regulated the wages and hours of migrant workers, and helped nearly 40,000 Many homeowners were threatened with foreclosure as the Great Depression wore on, and the Home Owners Loan Corporation was established to help. The HOLC was authorized to use $3 billion in bonds which were exchanged for ortgages, which were then converted into monthly installments over 15 years at low interest rates. About 1 million homeowners were given financial aid, on approximately 20% of all urban dwellings. To enforce the Truth-in Securities Act, which required that all stocks and bonds offered for public sale be registered with the Federal Trade Commission, the Securities and Exchange Commission was established. Set up to stop an economic depression from occurring again, the SEC was empowered to license all stock exchanges and regulate the manner in which securities were The Emergency Banking Relief Act confirmed the President†s right to close banks, setting standards for their reopening, and giving the President broad powers over the nation†s money and banking systems. Banks began to reopen under strict new regulations and government supervision, and the export of gold was prohibited, and the US was taken off the international Gold Standard. The act soon led to basic reforms of the banking system. The National Industrial Recovery Act suspended anti-trust laws, permitting firms to ease competition by rationing production and making price greements. In exchange, they promised to improve working conditions, reduce the work week, abolish child labor, and guarantee the right of their employees to organize and bargain collectively. Tailored to meet an immediate crisis, these early New Deal actions, though failing to end the economic slump, greatly eased the burdens of farmers, workers, and industrialists. A series of Supreme Court decisions that struck down the AAA and the NIRA led Roosevelt to launch a Second New Deal, which included the Social Security Act, Wagner Act, and set up the Works Many older Americans saw their life savings wiped out during the Great Depression, and were forced to rely on their children for support. To alleviate the burden of the family, and to provide a measure of security for the unemployed and their families, the Social Security Act was passed. The Act provided survivors† and disability insurance, public assistance, unemployment insurance, and old age retirement insurance. Various welfare measures were also mandated such as aid to dependent children, and aid to The Wagner Act gave Congress jurisdiction over the labor practices of mployers engaged in interstate commerce. The Act upheld the workers† rights to organize and bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing. Under the Act, the National Labor Relations Board was established to deal with charges of unfair labor practices and to issue cease and desist orders. The number of unionized workers grew rapidly from 3. 5 million to about 15 million in the first years of the Wagner Act. The purpose of the Works Progress Administration was to reduce dependence on private charity and federal, state, and local relief by putting eople to work on a variety of needed projects. Over 8. million individuals were put to work on over 1. 4 million individual projects, including building schools, hospitals, and post offices. Hundreds of artists and writers also found work under the Federal Arts Program, which was created by the WPA. The last major reform of the New Deal was the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. The Act abolished child labor, and provided for an initial minimum wage of 25 cents an hour and a maximum workweek of 44 hours. Hourly wages were gradually lifted to 40 cents and the workweek reduced to 40 hours, with ime and a half pay for overtime. These controls applied only to firms engaged in interstate commerce, and affected nearly 2 million workers. Franklin D. Roosevelt and his New Deal committed the federal government to act forcefully to prevent future economic disasters through direct intervention in virtually every aspect of economic life-from agricultural prices to the workings of the stock exchange. The New Deal energized the labor movement, and so swelled the number of people in the Democratic Party that it remained the nation†s major political party for several decades.