a new introduction

After months of having started this blog, it is time to make it more personal.

With the world of digital media growing, becoming a writer has become an easy task for anyone with a computer, web-access, and semi-organized ideas. Blogging seems to be a norm in a large number of the population who use this medium to express themselves, while also reaching others with similar mindsets. For this reason, many writing classes in college are requiring Communications students to create blogs, rather than write those old, boring, weekly essays. This was the my case.

I could have chosen to write about things that people my age are more interested in, like fashion, celebrities, fad diets, or daily glute work outs. Instead, I chose to use this opportunity to open out about something that I had recently discovered: Faith.

Through my journey, I noticed that a large portion of young minds were more preoccupied with the way the looked, than with their internal struggles. We ALL go through existential crises, but how we choose to deal with these has the ability to redefine our lives. Many fall in the trap of constant partying to deal with the fact that they are growing up, and soon will no longer have the chances to live a carefree lifestyle. Others, dive hard into their jobs and careers, because as we all know, money rules this world. As for me, I was dying to talk about LIFE. The more I found myself wanting to talk about the meaning of life, my purpose in it, and the Creator, the more isolated I began to feel.

I remember my first day of the Fall semester, walking through campus, looking at people’s faces and simply pondering on what they may be thinking. I wondered if anyone else had the same questions running through their mind as I did. I wondered if anyone else was concerned with the nature of their soul. I wondered if anyone else wanted to find meaning in this habitual ritual we like to call a life.

After being in a few different classrooms that first day and curiously eaves dropping on my peers around me, I concluded that other people were probably more worried about their graduation day than whether or not they were living the full potential of their existence.

When I got assigned to write a weekly blog about something that I am passionate about, faith and spirituality was my one, and only option. For 10 weeks I wrote on whatever was of interest to me, or something new I had learned. I wanted to share with people a different sense of reality. I wanted to open up the conversation with those closer to my age or younger about our time here on this earth. I wanted to let people know, and maybe understand, that the idea of God goes far beyond the doctrine of the church (millennials are the least religious generation). I wanted to impact my fellow youths. This was the case for Faithful Truth then.

From now on, I want to use this platform to be myself. To write with no boundaries. To allow my mind to wander into words that will forever be imprinted.

Bear with me as I find my voice, & get closer to the one true source of light, our Lord, Jesus Christ.

awoken

There is this infinity before me, I see

sunshine gleaming through the leaves.

I try to reach up

to the skies and feel

the dew as nature grieves, for times

that seem to never pass.

Open my eyes and find

a mirror of myself, extended through space

From shadows to light

we’ve traveled, hand in hand through the lens

of the world.

Why I Choose The Spiritual Way

Unless you have already decided to embark on a spiritual journey, the thought of being “spiritual” may bring to mind the idea of living in a state of zen filled with good vibes and completely separated from reality. However, if you have chosen to live the spiritual way you understand that there is another dimension to your physical reality that can only be explained and experienced through spirituality. Choosing to live life spiritually does not mean a disconnection from this world, but actually a real  sense of interconnection to the universe itself and other beings sharing in existence with you.

Choosing the spiritual life, however, is not easy. It takes time to become comfortable enough with who you are and to be able to express it fully. It takes effort to leave behind fleshful desires and focus on spiritual needs. It takes commitment and patience to fully partake in the bliss that derives from a spiritual life. But in the end, all of this is worth it. It is worth the time, effort, and commitment to become a part of the universe, rather than simply living in it.

I choose to live my life in the Spiritual Way because:

• It has made me more susceptible to change

The one thing that is sure in life is that nothing remains constant. Friends come and go, relationships end, and family members pass away. These things are going to happen, but the way we react to these defines us. When we base our happiness on temporal things our happiness also becomes temporal. We may want to hold on to the memories and the people in our memories in fear of losing happiness all together. However, spirituality gives you freedom from this. It allows you to see the big picture in everything that happens in order for you to understand that God is always looking out for you and your well-being, and that things will happen the way that He has meant for them to happen. I have learned to accept that it is not my way, and when things change unexpectedly I am quickly reminded of this. God is in control. Change is nothing to be afraid of. Embrace it.

• No day is a bad day

Spirituality allows me to embrace the bad just as much as the good. Even when days do not go exactly as planned, I am able to stop and realize that the simple fact that I get to live another day is good enough. Instead of focusing on what went wrong during the day I meditate on why it did. A lot of the times, I realize that if i do not start my day off right by relaxing, praying, drinking coffee, and breathing in some fresh air, not matter what I do for the rest of the day it just does not feel right. So, I have learned to stop each morning to appreciate life, and the rest of my day reflects it.

• It has taught me humility

No longer am I vain. I was once consumed by vanity never stopping to thank the One who created me. As I get older the more I understand that it is not about what I look like or what I own, but the person I’ve become. I had to learn this lesson the hard way, when all that I thought I was about tumbled down and I had to confront who I truly was inside, and I was not pleased. Christ, being God himself, humbled himself, so who am I to think that I do not also need to be humble in this life? Whatever blessings come my way I know to give all glory to Him, because He is who provides.

• I have a personal relationship with my Creator

In reality, we are all spiritually blind until we are illuminated by Christ. Though I enjoyed “spiritual” books and faux mediation before, it was not until I began to build this relationship with Christ that I have learned what it means to follow the Spirit. We all carry imagined ideas and images of what the world and reality is, but not until illumination do we get a vision of God. To be able to sit still and commune with the creator of all is a beautiful thing. Through spirituality, I am able to put what I have learned into practice to each day get a bit closer to Him.

• Life finally makes sense

Knowing that I was born into the world with a purpose far beyond my own makes all the pieces come together. Understanding how all of our spirits are interconnected and sharing in this existence broadens my perspective, and the universe no longer revolves around me. Emotions, actions, and the lack of now have a real meaning because I know from where they arise. I now understand the machinists of nature, the way they are all in sync, working together for one purpose, guided by the same Spirit which is in charge of all that is around me. Opening my eyes to this different dimension shines a light on things that I may have never seen before.

Love is my Religion

In the famous words of Bob Marley we can simplify what life is about: LOVE

In music, movies, books, and just about much of the media that we encounter on a daily basis, we encounter the word LOVE, but do we know what that word really entails, or are we simply living with the idea of what love is?

The idea of love has become the notion that love is meant to be the way movie studios have portrayed the relationship between two people, very passionate and submissive. Lust and obsession have become near synonyms for love, yet they are opposites. Lust is nothing but a sexual attraction to our outer appearances, but love comes from within and deals with the person as a whole. Love is not appreciating some parts of a person, or like what the person has to offer, rather deeply caring for someone regardless of what they have (or don’t have) as an individual, loving every inch of them, inside and out, good or bad.

We have created love affairs with temporal things around us, but disbelieve the idea of an eternal love, originating from a larger substance beyond our reach of comprehension. We have turned pop stars into idols we come to adore and admire, yet think it is silly to show as much adoration and admiration for the One who created all.

So, what is love?

Love is nothing but a combination of all that is good in the world: Honesty, understanding, patience, kindness, intimacy, and more. All these flow directly from the Godhead who is Himself Love itself.

We’ve all heard the Bible scripture “God is Love,” how do we actually believe the fullness of that statement? He is what allows true, pure love to flow

We may feel certain sensations towards someone or something and our senses quickly call it love. The truth is, unless we understand God’s attribute of Love, we may not know or understand what love truly is.

Love has no memory or conditions, it simply loves.

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Here is one of my favorite authors being interviewed by one of my favorite people. Paulo Coelho’s answer and Oprah’s explanation of what it means to love is beautiful.

God’s NOT Dead

When it comes to Christian films, no movie have seen so far has been able to depict the reality of Christianity as well as this highly acclaimed movie God’s Not Dead. The story of a freshman in college who is confronted with the dilemma of staying true to his faith, or accept his philosophy professor’s idea that God is in fact dead and absent from the world. Josh Wheaton, played by the actor Shane Harper, refuses to admit this, causing this dogmatic, atheist professor to challenge him to prove the existence of God in a series of three debates, and Josh accepts, for “only a real risk can test the quality of a believe.” In spite of his girlfriend’s insistence to just give in to the professor, Josh takes on the challenge personally, to not only prove the existence of God to the professor, but also give the other students in class a chance to hear about God.

However, the movie is not only about the student’s process of proving his professor wrong, but it portrays the lives and struggles of other believers, and their connections to each other. One of those characters is a daughter of a strict believer of Islam who does not believe in Jesus Christ, but Ayisha’s faith and desire to know more about Him is met with her dad’s disapproval that leads him to literally drag her out of the house. There is also Mina, the ex student of Professor Radisson, who is now his girlfriend, who believes in God, but is constantly being made to feel less intelligent by this man who claims to value intellect over superstition. Her brother Marc is a nonbeliever who seems to have it all in life, a nice car, money and success, but is spiritually empty, who breaks up with Amy, his girlfriend, when she reveals she has been diagnosed with cancer, because she will only be an inconvenience in his busy life. Mina and Marc’s mother is sick with Alzheimer’s, but in her interaction with her son at the end of the film, the power of the Holy Spirit over the body is clear when she delivers the best line of the movie:

“Sometimes the devil allows people to live a life free of trouble because he doesn’t want them turning to God. Their sin is like a jail cell, except it is all nice and comfy and there doesn’t seem to be any reason to leave. The door’s wide open. Till one day, time runs out, and the cell door slams shut, and suddenly it’s too late.”

This is by far one of the best analogies I have heard about our enslavement to things of the world.

We also meet a young pastor of the church who seems weak in faith, but overcomes it with the guidance of a missionary pastor who shows him what is is like to “fight in the trenches” for Christ. In the end, the professor comes to terms with the real reason he refuses to believe in God, and in the last moment of his life he accepts Him as his savior. Yes, the professor dies in an accident, coincidentally witnessed by the pastors, as he was on his way to a Christian concert where Mina, Josh, Ayisha and Amy all happen to be at.

I appreciate the rawness of the movie, and the point it makes that God’s existence doesn’t need to be “scientifically” proven, but it is instead felt and witnessed through faith and signs. Although Josh does use other science-based arguments in his debate, they do not hold as much weight in proving anything as much as the the mysterious ways in which God’s works are portrayed.

It was hard to believe at first that a professor in a university would request such a thing from his students, closing the doors to any explanation of God with the use of philosophy. I thought, “this could never happen in real life,” until the end credits rolled and showed 37 court cases that became the inspiration for the film.

The movie may not be “Oscar worthy,” but the message it delivers to its viewers is one of faith and understanding of God’s will, and should be seen with an open mind.

Stay tuned in 2015, when PureFlix releases the sequel, Believe.

we stopped checking for monsters under our bed when we realized they were inside us

Many of you have most likely heard or seen this quote before, and I’m sure some of you can relate.

All these voices of regret, anger, uncontrolled sadness, and anxiety live within us and for some people it becomes a more difficult task to ignore or get rid of than for others.

With every school shooting or highly publicized suicide, the topic of mental illness once again makes its way onto the headlines of the media, until it passes and we don’t hear about it until next time. The symptoms of depression often go unnoticed to family members and cases of severe anxiety seemed to get pushed out of the way or fed anti-anxiety drugs, so it makes you think if enough is being done to help these people who need so much more love and understanding.

These moments of blinding darkness seem to take hold of a person that hope for a brighter future becomes only a memory and the one way out is to take their own lives, thinking that they will no longer have to feel these things. I’d like to believe that there is a different route to finding a new life full of light and love.

As someone who once felt the crippling effects of anxiety and constant sadness, I’ve come to think that the we allow ourselves to be led by the voices in our head and forget that we have a will of our own to conquer these demons. The will of the Spirit.

We feel a void within us and look at all the wrong places to fill it. Whether friendships, relationships, drugs, or others, we are always trying to feel something different than what is inside our head. The truth is, the only thing that will actually fill all the cracks of our broken hearts and souls is the love our God pours out into our empty vessels.

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We crave love and forget that He only is Eternal Love

We want hope for the days to come and don’t realize that He is the source of Hope

We desire a new life and ignore than in Him we can be reborn. He is the Life.

We think that nobody understands, but don’t know that He knows our hearts .

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Mental illnesses have been around forever, even back in Biblical times. Some cultures just found different ways to treat and speak of them. Some with sever mental derangement were excommunicated from their villages because of their “demonic” nature. This was the case of two men Jesus encounters in Matthew 8:29 who were aggressive and self-destructive, but even the demons recognized Jesus as the Son of God. They knew they had nothing in common with Him, for Jesus seeks man’s salvation; but His presence torments them and expels them into a herd of pigs. This is a sign of the reality of the demoniacs’ healing. Jesus’ sovereign power is not only over physical affliction, but over mental illness as well. It shows us the incomparable value of human beings, whose salvation is worth every sacrifice.

 Now, I understand the complexity of mental illness, that some are far worse than others, but I also understand the healing power of Christ if we allow him to enter into our lives. Bad thoughts and emotions cannot coexist with the only source of true joy, hope, and love. It is true that in severe cases a lot more is probably required, but if at this is the first step, everything else becomes much easier. After all, these is much more to be gained than lost.

As for me, anxiety is no longer the monster it once was. I admit though, at times it tries to creep its way in, but there is nothing that prayer and faith cannot fix.

For anyone else who suffers from anxiety or depression, I’d like to invite you to give this a try. Open your heart to Jesus; you don’t even have to say a word to explain, because He already knows your afflictions and your pain. He just wants you to come to Him, instead of the things of this world. And remember, struggles are not in vain, and with Him you have the power to change your life for the better and become the strong person you are meant to be. I’m no psychologist, this just happens to be a part of my story. I’d like my life to become a testimony of faith.

I’ll leave this beautiful song by MercyMe here, in case you want this message is a more poetic and musical way.

My Journey to Truth: A Love Story

There I was in a lost world of my own. By the time I turned 22, I had been lead to believe I was supposed to have my life together, but I was far from it without even realizing it. Confusion about life and my purpose in it had slowly been creeping into a mind that was always wandering and getting lost. I began to feel a certain connection to the universe and I understood that there was something so far beyond my reach of imagination or conception and I was determined to at least get as close as I humanly could with the same thoughts that lead me to darkness in the past.

Under the influence of music and books, I walked down on a path of shadows where the light shone down on me enough to illuminate my next step. At times I closed my eyes and walked blindly right into a valley of temptation, others I would trip on the obstacle and fall face first into the hands of the enemy. Each time, this inner life cried out to the heavens, to an old friend I once knew as a child but quickly forgot the closer I was to the world, to pull me out and bring me back on the right path. Although I never gave Him much credit, I knew a Greater Being was behind the scenes working life out to what it is meant to be, and that somehow it was Him who I was so connected to. I wanted to know more about this Supreme Energy that was so constant in my world, yet seemed unreachable. I traveled many roads in search of Truth without a map and falling victim to the many deceptions of the world along the way.

There was a time when my way came to a crashing halt and I came face to face with my own mortality. In a moment when the possibility of non-existence became eminent, I knew someone was watching over and protecting me in His embrace to allow me to walk out of it in untouched. I now reflect on it and realize He was shaking me up to open my eyes to Him, telling me He is here, and because he is, I was here also. After this I began to hear His voice more and more clearly, but the wall of religion kept Him out. I was more concerned about the wickedness in the world and why a God of goodness would allow it to exist in his creation, instead of fully seeing God as the source of goodness and the world as the source of evil.

I decided to take down the wall and bury the ideology of what I had been taught and told about God and the world, to begin knowing him only through His works in my life and that of others around me, rather than the often misinterpreted image that humans had attempted to paint of him. I was blown away by His wonders, by the love and mercy he had for humanity to be born man, and die to defeat Death for our salvation. As man, we call Him Christ and in the past I had denied him: this I will forever regret. With a bright lamp unto my feet, the closer I felt to Christ the closer I got to Truth, because he IS the Life, the Truth, and the Way.

I will never forget the pure joy felt in my soul when I finally accepted Christ and the veil was lifted for me to see life through new eyes. In Living Water I was born again with a new life and a new journey. No longer am I afraid to walk through shadows of death because He is with me. My thoughts no longer wander aimlessly because I have given Him the control. I have chosen His will over mine, and trust that His purpose for my life is much bigger than I could hope for on my own. I have fallen so deeply in love with my Creator and His creation that I can’t imagine how I managed to survive in the past. When I think about it, in all things of the world, it was Him who I had been looking for so anxiously, and now knowing what it is like to be on His side I never want to go back.

I have come to know that we must all become broken somewhere down the road so that our Healer can repair us with His ever-flowing love. In times of despair He is the hope we hold onto for a brighter Tomorrow. On bad days I tend to look back, only to realize how far I have come, and that in every step of the way He carried me with His great mercy, never left me alone, and always whispered to my heart to keep going. I have put every ounce of trust in Him, and on this long new road He will no longer have to carry me because I have gained more freedom that ever imagined, however, I will not let go of His open hand.

The Four Agreements

Could you ever have believed that four simple changes in your way of thinking could change your life?

Until I came across The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz, neither did I.

Written by Don Miguel Ruiz and based on ancient Toltec wisdom, this book has the ability to empower its reader, and provide a level of mental freedom that I found to be soothing to the soul. Before I decided to open and read a bible, The Four Agreements helped me get my mind right as it became a code of conduct. Things that previously could have greatly affected me, no longer meant anything simply because I had changed the way my mind thought and operated. Little do we sometimes realize (specially when we’re young), how our beliefs and attitudes towards thing are a bigger limitation to our happiness that the actual event that occurs, and therefore create useless suffering. This is a quick read that could have a greater influence on your spiritual path than a thousand-page self-help book. However, if you don’t feel like spending a couple hours of your busy life reading something that seems so obvious, I’ll give a gist of it.

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       1. BE IMPECCABLE WITH YOUR WORD

While the most important, this agreement is also the hardest. Your words are extremely powerful and have the ability to create your world. Everything you are, feel and think are voiced and expressed through your words. For that reason, only say what you really mean, and be honest with both yourself, and the person who you are speaking to, so that who you are, what you think, and how you feel don’t get misconstrued and the real you can come through. Remain positive with your choice of words and your mind will begin to think in only positive terms. Use your words appropriately and full of love, so that love fills your thoughts and therefore your life.

       2. DON’T TAKE ANYTHING PERSONAL

Start realizing that you are not the center of everyone’s universe. Not everything that somebody does or says have something to do with you, but instead it is a projection of their own reality. Somebody else being negative should not be taken personally and allowed to influence and pollute your mind. Even if someone is being rude directly towards you it means that their life is filled with a negative potion, and by you taking that personally, you accept to drink the potion. You gain personal freedom the moment you stop taking things personally, as you see anger, jealousy and resentment slowly make a way out of you, and happiness and tranquility stepping in.

       3. DON’T MAKE ASSUMPTIONS

How many times have you caused yourself stress or anxiety simply because you make an assumption of someone else’s opinion of you? The problem with making assumptions is that we begin to believe what we assume. We create so much personal venom inside us by making assumptions instead of taking a minute and trying to find the truth of the situation. Stop assuming someone else’s feeling and ask them how they feel. Stop assuming the world is against you and don’t take personally even if they are. Use your words and communicate, this will save you from much unnecessary stress.

4. ALWAYS DO YOUR BEST

This agreement is simply the realization of the previous three. Do your best and you will avoid self-judgement, self-abuse and regret, because you will be at peace with yourself knowing that even if the situation is not perfect, you did all that you could do.

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Evil in a World Created by a Good God

Have you been looking around lately at all the evil in the world and wondered if God has deserted us? Well, you’re not the only one. It seems that the more wicked humans’ actions get, the more we doubt the existence of a good, all-powerful God, and that’s normal. However, it is not He who has abandoned us but rather us who have turned away from Him.

Its easy to blame the Creator of the world for all the evil that happens, but we must first understand that it is the lack of godliness that has brought humanity as a whole into demise. God, the creator of all things, is not the creator of evil. Now, you may wonder how that is and I am here to explain.

By putting it into a simple logical argument we understand the following premises: 1) God created all things that are good, 2) Evil is not good, coming to the conclusion that God did not create evil.

A different way to explain this is also by noting that evil itself is not a substance. Similarly to darkness being the deprivation of light, or cold the lack of heat, evil is the lack of goodness. In this analogy, God is light and warmth, wickedness is dark and cold.

Evil comes from man CHOOSING to go against God, better known as sin, because we are born with Free Will. In his book The Case for Christianity, C.S. Lewis gives the simplest explanation for this:

Why, then, did God give them free will? Because free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having.

Think about it. God is a jealous God who WANTS us to CHOOSE to love him, because if He forced us into loving Him it would not be true love. If we had joy without experiencing what it is like to not have it we would not to appreciate it.

In the same way, if God who is all-powerful was to eliminate evil, He would be imposing on our free will. Without evil, we would not have the opportunity to overcome it, and therefore appreciate what is good and full of love.

God is the doctor, and humans are ill with sin. The same way that we cannot blame a doctor for cutting us open and ridding us of the disease as if he was the cause for it, we cannot be angry at God for inflicting evil upon us, because he simply did not.

As for Christians, we must have faith in the mercy of our Lord, and know that He has a bigger plan for us. In a world raining down evil, He will be our shelter.

How do you decide who the next President should be if you’ve lost faith in humanity?

LET’S GET POLITICAL, SHALL WE?

In the year 2014, the idea of combining religious belief and political affiliation is seen as a political sin by nearly every non-conservative. Often we hear the famous words of Thomas Jefferson, “separation of church and state” as a main argument, but we fail to recognize the context in which those words were said. In 1802, Thomas Jefferson wrote a letter responding to the Danbury Baptist Church of Connecticut’s concern of new legislation being asked for by Americans, which would establish a religion, therefore prohibiting the free practice of it. In this letter, President Jefferson assures the church that there will be a “wall of separation between church and State.” Furthermore, on July 13, 1787, the Continental Congress enacted the Northwest Ordinance, which stated: “Religion, morality and knowledge, being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind, schools and the means of education shall be forever encouraged.” Essentially, government should stay out of religious affairs, not religion out of politics. So, why all of a sudden are people so focused on keeping religion and faith out of schools and politics?

That, I can’t answer (without going on a rant about atheists), but I can tell you what I think about this debate, and hopefully help you understand why we should stop taking Jefferson’s words out of context in order to prove a point that will only continue to demoralize this nation. Considering midterm elections are coming up, this debate is once again relevant.

Just last week, Glenn Beck stood in front of thousands at the Values Voter Summit and spoke about this very same issue. I came across this video as I looked for something that would help me better express my new personal attitudes towards voting and politics. Like many of you, I used to believe that religion in general should have nothing to do with government, but the day I decided to read the oldest history book, the Bible, my mind changed. All of a sudden, so many government practices, and just life in general made complete sense. The Bible tells the story of the beginning of the world and humanity giving us a glimpse into how societies were first established, so when I heard Beck say that we have forgotten the STORY of our history, (starting with the Bible) he caught my full attention.

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[As a side note, I personally do not have a political party affiliation, nor do I agree with many of the others who spoke at the summit. I believe that once a person chooses Democrat or Republican, they limit themselves to vote for the party, not the policies of the individual. You are essentially choosing to join the religion of “Republicanism” or “Democratism” and falling in line with those beliefs.]

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So, as presidential elections approach and Americans once again have to choose who the leader of this once great, powerful nation should be, let us be smart when we make this decision. In a time of (religious) war, whomever we vote into office to take on this MEGAHUGE responsibility should have a leader of his or her own. That leader should be God. God only will lead his righteous people into victory with a strong hand.

Us Millennials, have the chance to become the generation that changes history for the better. For the past twenty years, we have watched the United States of America go from victorious and powerful, to a country that is constantly mocked by others and seen as politically weak. We can be the ones who leave behind party affiliations and vote on policies instead. In 2016, when we decide who should lead this country for four, maybe eight years, let us pay attention to his morals, his family life and beliefs, and that his policies become reflective of such. We do not need another Reagan (republican) or JFK (democrat), what we do need is our very own President who will be focused of changing the history of this nation and the world for the better, by keeping his eyes on God. Not someone who is power-hungry and chosen by money-hungry people to be a puppet. For the one who keeps his eyes on God shall never go astray.

Here is Glenn Beck, if you’d like to watch and judge for yourself