Religion Vs. Relationship

Did you know the bible calls us to be modest? Not just in our clothing but in our conversations and behaviors also. Did you know that just because you wear long skirts, you are not more holy than the next person? (No I'm not saying long skirts are bad) Yes the God has rules for how we should act, speak, and dress however if you are doing everything to the T but missing the personal relationship then all of your efforts are in vain. Without praying, searching out who God is, searching the heart of Jesus and knowing more about Him you are not going to get anywhere fast. Jesus said in order to know the difference between a Christian and a fake you need to look at their fruit. Ok no we are not trees, you can not pick cherries off our fingers but the fruit of our lives. You can take that literally and say their children, or you can look at it and say their behaviors and attitudes. If you are living your life for Jesus there are things you will not be doing. One of them would be dressing like a hoochie mama. (I have no idea if I spelled that one right. It doesn't seem to be in my spell check. Ha ha) Another would be lying, or stealing.

Children as fruit: You can tell a lot about how people parent by watching their children for 5 min. One thing is small children have not learned to control their tongues so things just come out. Second I firmly believe that a child will only get away with what the parent allows. I'm not saying the child will only do things that they are allowed I am saying they will only "get away with what they are allowed". If you tell a child they can not have something and they right away end up in a melted pile of mush on the ground screaming and yelling it is obvious that the parent has allowed it. Of course when this happens in public the parent is embarrassed. But what if the parent at home does not allow that behavior. The first time that child displays that type of behavior if the parent deals with it swiftly and sternly there is a greater chance of it not happening in public. I have a very strict rule in my home. It is "if it is not cute when they are 15 then it is never cute". Things like playing with food, jumping on furniture or throwing a fit. You can not allow it then suddenly ohh you are 5 now you can't do that anymore. It is much wiser to just never allow bad behavior. Ok sorry tangent. Back to fruit. If you children are obedient, helpful, respectful, and caring your "fruit" is something that will show others where your heart is. If your "fruit" is destroying things, hurting others and being a pain all the time then it is showing how you parent and the fruit is just not there.

If you are reading your bible, searching for the true heart of God, all of the fruit comes. You don't have to do anything to impress others, or try to make them believe you are holy. When you die God is not going to ask your friends if you were holy or not. HE KNOWS!!! Someone I know became a Christian a few months ago. One of her prayers were "God I'm not going to change your going to have to change me." When she told me this I laughed so hard. That is what a Christian is, someone who changes from being a part of this world in to someone more like God. Since that prayer this person has changed soooo much!!! HUGE leaps and bounds. When you seek Him you become more like Him. You will start to dislike things of this world that previously didn't bother you. If God tells you to only wear long skirts fine but don't just do it because you think you are closer to God for it.

(Yes I'm picking on the long skirts however I mean no harm they are not bad they are just my example. I do wear long skirts most of the time. They are very comfortable, and many grow with the ever changing belly every year or so!!)