Amber Wants to Say Something

Oh Boy!

2011-04-22T14:30:00.000-07:00

2009 was the last time I blogged. Yikes.

New things are in the air, so, I think I'll get to writing again soon. As usual, I don't have anything profound or even beautiful to say. I'm not a writer, and I make a lot of spelling errors :-) Nonetheless - thanks for stopping by and I'll chat at ya soon!

Amber

PS: new twitter name @mamberita

As Winter Draws Near

2009-11-03T16:03:00.000-08:00

More than any other autumn season I've found myself really appreciating the colors and smells of fall. Tonight i saw the most beautiful sunset on my way home from work. If I wasn't stopping at Bed Bath and Beyond to get loads of Keurig coffee, I probably would have darted home to get my camera, and then to the Willows. The Willows is the only place I know close by to get a great view of the sunset over the water.

I've been trying to scope out more portrait locations for my clients. I was stuck in a Lynch Park rut, and wanted to explore all the different parks and recreation areas on the North Shore. I've only made it to a few so far - but have plans to hit more of them as time allows. I made it to Appleton Farms in Ipswich a few weekends ago for a Trash the Dress session. That place is HUGE and though I only walked in about half a mile with my client, I could tell there was LOTS to explore. The red, orange, and yellow leaves are so gorgeous- especially when the light is hitting them just so. Ya know, "magic light", as us photographers like to call it.

Well, just picked my parents up from the airport and I lost my will to write :) That's all for now!! I LOVE THE FALL!!

Wahoo!

2009-09-03T20:11:00.000-07:00

Every time I open my blog, I am disturbed that the post "bacon explosion" is the last item I felt worthy of blogging about. :) Well, it's been a super busy summer. I've had photo shoots pretty consistently every weekend, and when I haven't had shoots, I've had meetings with videographer Leeann to discuss our destination wedding marketing plans. I'm definitely excited about all the new possibilities. I think I'm going to be VERY busy next year between weddings and portrait sessions! And no plans to quit the day job anytime soon either. Changes to come in that area as well, but I'll know more after I meet with my boss next week.

In other news, just when I thought I couldn't cram any more vacation time into my schedule... Paul and I are going to Sedona in a couple of weeks!! We're very excited. We've been there before with my side of the family, and this time we are going with Paul's parents. They vacationed there last year, and loved it so much they purchased a time share. So lucky us, we get to take advantage of some free lodging! The weather will be beautiful and I'm looking forward to doing some hiking, relaxing, and just enjoying the outdoors! I'm sure I'll have PLENTY of pictures to share when we get back.

Well, that about does it for the superficial news in my life. Sorry for the lack of depth lately... but I usually get overwhelmed when I start thinking about anything I would want to write down!

Peace :)

Bacon Explosion

2009-07-10T09:03:00.000-07:00

Apparently Paul was sent this recipe about a year ago:

http://www.bbqaddicts.com/blog/recipes/bacon-explosion/

He forwarded it on to some friends at work, and much to his delight, a co-worker actually made it last week. And the next morning, he brought in the leftovers! Paul was SO excited last week, he even brought some slices home with him from work.

In between last week and this, he had his cholesterol tested, and had great results.

So last night, he finds there are two slices of bacon explosion left in the fridge. Our conversation goes something like this:

Paul "Mmm, I'm going to eat the rest of the bacon explosion"
Amber "That's discusting, it's been there for a week"
Paul "I eat stuff all the time that you won't touch. Milk that you say is already BAD, etc"
Amber "Whatever, that bacon is going straight to your belly"
Paul "Try a bite, c'mon, it's cooking, it will be fine"
Amber "Not a chance, I would never eat that"
Paul "C'mooooooon" (endless)
Amber "The only bacon I'll eat or feed you is turkey bacon. "
Paul "Oh please, I just had my cholesterol tested, and it's GREAT, I can eat all of this I want".
Amber "I feed you turkey bacon so your cholesterol will STAY low"
Paul "I'll eat your disgusting turkey bacon for a thousand years if you take a bite of this"
Amber "I do not negotiate with food terrorists"

Yeah

2009-06-21T18:12:00.000-07:00

I know, it's been FOREVER since I've blogged. But you know what - it's kinda hard to keep up with facebook, forevercandid, twitter, etc etc etc!! Check out my facebook www.facebook.com/mamber (along with my forevercandid fanpage) to see what's up!

Quickly - shooting a wedding this Sat (woo!). Going to St Thomas for a destination wedding from July 2nd - 6th (double woo!), and senior portrait shoot the Sat after that (woo?). I'll be editing those two weddings, along with another wedding that my sister is shooting, and then the senior photos during the weekdays + the rest of July until a wedding on August 1st. It's going to be busy around here! Oh yeah, there is my actual job, and then house renovation. I'm getting tired just thinking about it all! Ciao.

Oh yeah, currently reading "The Reason for God" by Timothy Keller. In to chapter 5. Maybe I can get it done this week, before the madness ensues. So far I really like it!

Oh yeah again, Kelly and Chris are moving to western PA in August, and my cousins Mary and Adam back to New York near the same time. I knew this would be a year of change (did I reference that in a blog a few months ago?), but so far I've been a little too acurate! But life is good. Paul and I are very happy. Wahoo!

movie quote

2009-04-18T20:30:00.001-07:00

This is completely random, but when I heard the line spoke it just hit me and I felt the need to blog it. This was me 4 years ago. It's amazing for to look back to then and see the difference between me then, and me now. It's amazing how love heals. And I know anyone who's experienced true heartbreak in their life will be able to relate to below on some level as well.

"I understand feeling as small and as insignificant as humanly possible. And how it can actually ache in places you didn't know you had inside you. And it doesn't matter how many new haircuts you get, or gyms you join, or how many glasses of chardonnay you drink with your girlfriends... you still go to bed every night going over every detail and wonder what you did wrong or how you could have misunderstood. And how in the hell for that brief moment you could think that you were that happy. And sometimes you can even convince yourself that he'll see the light and show up at your door. And after all that, however long all that may be, you'll go somewhere new. And you'll meet people who make you feel worthwhile again. And little pieces of your soul will finally come back. And all that fuzzy stuff, those years of your life that you wasted, that will eventually begin to fade." From The Holiday (spoken by Iris played by Kate Winslet)

Be my guest!

2009-03-19T12:12:00.000-07:00

A couple week ago my brother in law convinced me to audition for Into the Woods at Neverland Theatre. I haven't done a show in um 6 years!! But I thought since the timing was perfect (no weddings yet) that it would be fun! So ok, I learned Into the Woods, spend hours upon hours figuring out what cut I would use for my audition etc etc. I was ready to go. So on the audition night I actually had a wedding consult in Tyngsboro at 7pm. I couldn't make it to the audition until the end (around 9pm) so I e-mail the director and let him know. He said that was fine. Long story short I arrived at the audition and noone was there! AAH I was so frustrated. When I got home there was an e-mail saying he had to leave and would let me know if they ever did that show again. WHAT?? All that prep time for nothing?

Well about a week later I got another e-mail from the director saying that despite the good talent that auditioned that night, he just didn't have enough people, and was changing the show to Beauty and the Beast! Oook... so by that time I was over my frustration and decided to audition again! Well it's a few weeks later and last night was my final audition. I have been cast as Mrs Potts! I was not cast because I went in and blew them away with how motherly and old sounding I am (ha). I instead have a long history of playing parts for 10-20yr old girls. But anyway they couldn't find a Mrs Potts and asked if I would consider reading for her if they couldn't find someone more "rotund and older sounding". The call back was last night and after a bit of coaching (and confirmation that I can indeed do a Brittish accent) they apparently decided I can pull it off :)...

So I definitely never thought going into this I'd walk out with a challenging role (I was going to be happy being part of the ensemble). Now I am just hoping I don't have to wear a giant tea pot arm. Just google image search Mrs Potts and you'll see some of the horrible costuming that's out there... eek!

St. Thomas and Mexico!!

2009-02-20T08:29:00.001-08:00

Well some exciting news in my world...

I have officially been hired for a destination wedding in St. Thomas!

I am extremely excited as you can imagine :) I've been there before, but only on a cruise ship stop - so it will be nice to have a few more days to check out the beautiful island! The wedding is only July 4th. I am flying in with the videographer on July 2nd, and we are going to stay until the 6th so we have an extra day with no wedding activities. This will be a great opportunity for me photographically. I really can't wait to get the bride and groom on the beach!! We will have a blast.

In OTHER news, Paul and I finally bit the bullet (thank you Uncle Sam) and planned a vacation! It's been too long as far as I'm concerned anyway... the last time we went somewhere outside of Greensboro or Maine, was in April '07. A LOT has happened since then and it will be nice to get away for a week. The best part is we are leaving in less than two weeks - March 5th!!

Here I come amazingly warm weather, beautiful beaches, and fantastic Mayan Ruins!! We will be staying in Tulum, which is about an hour south of Cancun, and is where a lot of ruins are. Less touristy than Cancun with the same amazing beaches!

Well, I just wanted to share what's been going on! It's been a while since I had posted, but there is definitely more to come... including the rice & bean dinners I will be coordinating during the Lent season inspired by Angela Austin's blog. :)

Voice of Truth (Casting Crowns)

2009-01-24T12:42:00.000-08:00

I was in the other room, and my new friend Pandora was playing in the other room. A song came on called the Voice of Truth and got my attention so much that I had to drop what I was doing and come bookmark the song. Anyway, I thought since it struck me so much I might as well share! Here are the lyrics:

Oh,what I would do to have
the kind of faith it takes
To climb out of this boat I'm in
Onto the crashing waves
To step out of my comfort zone
Into the realm of the unknown
Where Jesus is,
And he's holding out his hand

But the waves are calling out my name
and they laugh at me
Reminding me of all the times
I've tried before and failed
The waves they keep on telling me
time and time again
"Boy, you'll never win,
you'll never win."

But the voice of truth tells me a different story
the voice of truth says "do not be afraid!"
and the voice of truth says "this is for my glory"
Out of all the voices calling out to me
I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth

Oh, what I would do
to have the kind of strength it takes
To stand before a giant
with just a sling and a stone
Surrounded by the sound
of a thousand warriors
shaking in their armor
Wishing they'd have had the strength to stand

But the giant's calling out
my name and he laughs at me
Reminding me of all the times
I've tried before and failed
The giant keeps on telling me
time and time again
"Boy you'll never win,
you'll never win."

But the voice of truth tells me a different story
the voice of truth says "do not be afraid!"
and the voice of truth says "this is for my glory"
Out of all the voices calling out to me
I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth

But the stone was just the right size
to put the giant on the ground
and the waves they don't seem so high
from on top of them looking down
I will soar with the wings of eagles
when I stop and listen to the sound of Jesus
singing over me

But the voice of truth tells me a different story
The voice of truth says do not be afraid
And the voice of truth says this is for my glory
Out of all the voices calling out to me (calling out to me)
I will choose to listen and believe (I will choose to listen and believe)
I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth

I will listen and believe
I will listen and believe the voice of truth
I will listen and believe
'Cause Jesus you are the voice of truth
And I will listen to you.. oh you are

What amazing lyrics and so true in my life. When there are so many things pulling me in 20 different directions, Jesus tells us do NOT worry and do NOT be afraid. He is the voice of truth, and I need to pay more attention!

Hope everyone has a great weekend :)

Thoughts on The Shack

2009-01-09T17:10:00.001-08:00

If you've read the book already, this image is already dancing in your mind, bringing back all sorts of memories! No spoilers though, so don't be afraid to read this... :)

I first heard of this book while reading someone's blog comments. Didn't think much of it, until I heard someone talking about in the context of "people are sending it back to CBD (Christian Book Distributors) saying it's heresy". Well naturally, that got me curious! As I heard from more and more people about the book (mostly loving it), I decided it was a must. On my way home from Christmas in North Carolina, I picked it up in the airport. They were offering a 50% back deal if you returned it when you got to another airport, but somehow I knew I wouldn't want to give the book up after I was done.

First I'll say, I really loved the book. It wasn't at all what I was expecting (not sure what I WAS expecting). It forces you to use your imagination and think outside the box. I really enjoyed that part about it - kind of an escape from reality of sorts. I took many things from the book but what seems to have laid itself upon my heart the deepest is regarding the nature of God.

I promised I wouldn't spoil the book so I can't really go farther on that thought except to say this: my prayer style has changed. TANGENT WARNING. Suddenly it doesn't feel "right" to ask God for anything. Including everything from the mundane all the way to biggest things we cry out to God for. I feel I need to be more responsible for my own actions and personality. One of my biggest pet peeves (warranted or not) is when people say things like "well how could it be wrong, that's the way God made me". ACK! I truly believe God made us in His perfect image, and then gave us freedom to make our choices, which is where we royally screwed up. The way we ARE is a direct result of not only our choices and actions but fortunatly or unfortunatly the result of our nurturing and generations before us. How does this relate to the book, well, instead of just asking God to change me, I feel I need to ask God to help me be 100% more aware of the Holy Spirit He gave me. He has already given me my answer, the opportunity to change, and it's up to me to use it and make the effort to do so.

Read it!! :) Regardless of it's controversial nature (for the record, I did not find it very controversial. Different yes, controversial? Nah) I think each person will take something entirely different from the book. I think it will indeed be very helpful to anyone who feels the need to get a clearer picture of God. I will probably read it again at some point and definitely recommend it. Maybe later (after the novelty of it has worn a bit) I will write a post with greater detail!

What did others take from the book that have read it?

Another New Year...

2009-01-01T10:42:00.000-08:00

The New Year comes with mixed emotions for me. So here is my little attempt at a year-end-review so I can remind myself of everything that happened! 2008 held many events that brought joy to my life...

1) Kelly being "done" with cancer (at least the chemo/radiation/surgery parts).

2) My dad getting super healthy and running the Boston marathon.

3) My sis-in-law Jen Shomo (now Rothacker!) getting married, and being able to photograph her wedding.

4) My best friend Kerrie getting married and being privileged as her matron-of-honor.

5) My kittie!
6) Visiting my mom-mom and finding old pictures of my pappy during WWII. Also seeing some of my cousins for the first time in a very long time..

Other mention worthy moments are Jen & Beth coming to visit in February, and the whole Chewning fam coming up in August. Amy and Drew moving here in Feb (or March?). Re-siding our house (another blog, another time). 5 year college reunion. All my photography endeavors. 4th of July at the Richardson camp & Casey's wedding (seeing the whole fam together). North Conway with Paul for our 3 yr anniversary. Hanging out with Heather and PJ twice when they visited from TN.

And somehow, after all of this.. I still feel like 2008 was lacking on some level! You can see from above that I have many reasons to be joyful, and I certainly am. However "happy" isn't a word that I have found myself using on a regular basis. For the sake of my readers it's certainly best that I don't go into detail here but I will say this: I've found myself less understood than I want to be, less involved than I want to be, and less respected than I want to be. In a lifetime where I am using to being a person who is trusted, loved, and accepted for who I am, I feel like the winds have shifted. Then again, it's only at certain times and in certain places I feel that way, and the majority of people in my life have nothing to do with this!! So sorry for the downer moment - but It's on my mind as I look into a new year. This year holds many possibilities - many of which I am greatly anticipating. My personal resolution is to be less complacent, to take action, to not fear wearing my heart on my sleeve, and to trust God more and more to be the person He has created and called me to be. It is my duty to love and be loved, and in 2009 instead of surviving, I'm going to try thriving.

Coca-Cola, the cause of obesity.

2008-12-15T07:38:00.000-08:00

I couldn't wait to get to my blog this morning. On my way to work I was listening to 1030am (it stimulates my brain so I don't swerve due to sleepiness). They were giving random news stories and this one struck me - as pretty much the most rediculous thing I've ever heard. I went on google news to check it out and here's a little snippet of an article:

Paterson also reportedly plans to increase taxes on insurance policies, on non-diet sodas under an "obesity tax," reviving the state sales tax on clothing, and changes in funding of hospitals and health care provides that could shift more health costs on individuals and employers.

So yes obviously from the title of my blog I'm reference the non-diet soda obesity tax. You've got to be KIDDING me New York! 1st of all, clearly they are not aware of the millions of non-obese consumers who happen to enjoy regular soda over the IMHO discusting alternative. 2nd of all, have they not heard of the studies that show people who drink diet soda end up eating more because it is less fulfilling? 3rd of all, why don't you just add tax on regular sugar while you're at it... diet soda aspartame has not only been shown to mess with your overall health, but has been shown to cause cancer as well. The cost difference is said to be about 15 cents and to add about $400MIL (not sure if that was all the new taxes combined or just the soda). Really New York?

Anyway, just thought I'd throw that one up here for a few giggles. People never cease to amaze.

a day in the office

2008-11-19T07:05:00.000-08:00

I just got into work, and a minute ago the office landlord came through the door. His name is Mr. Miller, and he's about 75 years old (I think older actually). I had my hood was up when he came in and he said "are you cold in here?". He walked straight to the thermostat to see what it was set on. "72" he says. I was immediatly reminded of last year, when I used to set it at 80, and thought "phew"! I said I was fine, and that I had just come in from outside and still a little chilled from the cold air.

"Will you do me a favor" he asks. "Sure!" I said. (Usually he asks me to make sure the hall lights are off when I leave, or that the door is locked). "Will you show me how to use that machine that you and Thom (my boss) got rid of a little while ago"? OH DEAR. He was referring to the printer/fax/copy/scanner that I had wars with a few months ago. I swear he watches people walk to the dumpster and scavanges whatever we put in! I hesitated and said "I'm not sure if I can do that, did you fix it?". "Oh, it's broken?" he asked. LOL. I said "yeah, it jams up real bad, I don't know if it would be worth your time to try to get it working". I could sense his dissapointment. I hated to let him down, but last time we had a less-than-fabulous printer (before the one he's talking about) it sat here in our office for about a month. Mr. Miller came in when my boss was here and asked if he could have it. I had told Thom before that it was a power surge that took out this particular printer. It was dead, and there was no way to revive it. He obviously either didn't remember, or didn't believe me, because he told Mr. Miller to have it, and to come back when I was around and I would give him the paperwork to get it all set up. Ugh! When he came back, I handed him the CD that came with the printer with the software/drivers etc on it, and he said "what do I do with this?". Giving up, I told him politely that maybe his son could help him set it up, to which he said "yeah ok" and walked out the door. Haha. That may sound like a mean thing to do but you have no idea how hard it is to get through to these people sometimes!

Well then he started telling me a story about how he was in a store yesterday about to ring out, and because he's in there a lot he knew the employees fairly well. He said to the woman behind the counter "where's the black lady that normally works here?". He then says to me "I don't know how you would have handled this situation..". Apparently, the lady behind him was IRRATE that he had used the work "black" and began to give him a speech about how he couldn't do that, and was going to be in trouble, and he was only to refer to people as African American. WOW! I didn't know people were still out there like that (am I being ignorant here?). I told Mr. Miller that there are some people that will do anything to feel like they have power, and that as long as he didn't give her his name and address, he had nothing to worry about! Lol. Anyway, as Mr. Miller finally walked toward the door, on his way out he said "turn up the heat if you need it!".

Aaaaw, what a nice old man. Such a pleasant surprise to hear someone tell me to turn the heat UP! It's freezing outside (29 deg right now). It's too early to be that cold!

a testimony

2008-11-06T12:26:00.000-08:00

I think this speaks for itself, wow!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2I0DRk8dFjI

Happy Anniversary to ME :-)

2008-11-04T07:05:00.000-08:00

Today marks 3 years!! Crazy how time flies. I have nothing but awesome memories of my wedding day. It coudn't have been any better. My family and friends (minus a few that I wish could have made it!) all on that beach together as we said our vows, it was just picture perfect! Tonight we are going to RuthsChris for dinner. It's the same restaurant we had our "reception" at in Maui. I'm looking forward to a yummy steak!! We are taking tomorrow off of work so we can sleep in. And the best part is that it's supposed to be 65 tomorrow so it will be fun to get out of the house. We are probably going to do a little shopping for each other since we didn't get gifts ahead of time. FUN :)

Well I hope everyone has a great day! Enjoy the warmer weather if you are around here.

1 Corinthians 13

1If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.
4Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

8Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. 11When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. 12Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

13And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

no more biting my tongue

2008-10-27T14:14:00.000-07:00

There's been a lot of blog talk regarding the topic of homosexuality, and so far, I've just read and not written. I wanted to avoid responding with any gut reactions, before taking the time to do my own studying of the subject etc. Let me give you a little background before I start so you can understand where I'm coming from.

1) I do believe the Bible is the inerrant Word of God.
2) I struggle and will say for sake of condensing my opinion that I do not believe that the many (many, many, many, many) interpretations that have come down through the centuries are inerrant. This opinion is based on my understanding of the history of language translation, the undeniable fact of the possibility of human error.
3) Someone in another post made the point that we tend to take other people's arguments, and make them our own so long as they line up with what we previously believed. I think this person has a good point, and I am making every attempt to avoid that, therefore I will tend to walk through my thought process rather that just bluntly state how I feel.

The first thing I did was to find all the scripture references to homosexuality. Feel free to let me know if I've left any out, but after searching several places - these are what I've found to be most commonly referenced:
Gen. 19:4 -13, 1 Tim 1:8-10, Lev. 18:22, Lev 20:13, 1 Cor. 6:9-10. Rom. 1:26-28

Re: Gen. 19:4 -13
The Genesis scripture refers to the story of Lot. The men of the city go to his house and ask Lot to let them in so that they may "know" them. Lot begs them to leave ("I beseech you my brethren, do not commit this evil"). Lot then offers his two daughters to them ("I have two daughters who as yet have not known man : I will bring them out to you, and abuse you them as it shall please you, so that you do no evil to these men, because they are come in under the shadow of my roof"). SAY WHAT? Someone's going to have to help me here to understand why it's not ok to for the city men to "know" the men in the house, but it's ok for them to "know" Lot's virgin daughters. I'm guessing the first explanation will be of a cultural nature. So my question is, if it's culturaly acceptable for a father to give up his daughters to be sexually abused in that time frame, where does the argument of homosexuality being culturaly acceptable for this time-frame fall? Does it? Curious on different interpretations of that. Am I willing to base my whole opinion on homosexuality based on these verses? I don't think so.

Re: 1 Tim 1:8-10 and 1 Cor. 6:9-10
"We know that the law is good, provided that one uses it as law, with the understanding that law is meant not for a righteous person but for the lawless and the unruly, the godless and the sinful, the unholy and profane, those who kill their fathers or mothers, murders, the unchaste, homosexuals, kidnappers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is opposed to sound teaching,"

"Or do you not know that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, shall inherit the kingdom of God."

What I've read on these verses is interesting and deals with the specific interpretation of the word homosexual. The reason behind the debate is that 1) the word "homosexual" wasn't even around until the 19th Century. The original Greek word "arsenokoitai" has been translated more than a few different ways over the years including someone who masturbates, someone who molests children, etc. So 1500-1900yrs after these passages were written, we've come up with the word homosexual and plugged it in? My issue here is the human factor. While sure, it makes sense in context to use any one of those translations, am I willing to steak my claim as a Christian on this? I'll say it again - am I willing to base my whole opinion on homosexuality based on these verses? I don't think so.

Re: Lev. 18:22 & Lev 20:13
Both these passages seem pretty clear. They both refer to a man or woman lying with another man or woman to be an "abomination" or "detestable". Again, because these are Old Testament, anyone can argue cultural differences (if you can argue it for the treatment of women and slaves, you can argue this too). One more time- am I willing to base my whole opinion on homosexuality based on these verses?

Re: Rom. 1:26-28
"For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error. And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper." For me, this passage has the strongest evidence for homosexuality being against God's will. I do think it is unnatural, and not the way God intended for us to enjoy the gift of sex. I think there is definitely plenty of evidence to support it being physically "degrading" to the body *just as other sexual acts outside of monogamous man & woman marriage are* (std's, aids, etc). Another translation says "shameful lusts" instead of "degrading passions". I don't think we need to have a debate on whether lust is a sin or not.

In conclusion, I have stated before that I will not make judgement on homosexuals, as it is not my place. It may sound like a cop out, however I will quote this passage:

"I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”
--Matthew 12:36-37

We all know what we have done as a church to ostracize homosexuals. I was thinking the other day about what would happen, if we all had to wear a big sign on us that listed our most obvious flaw. For instance if you had a problem with telling little white lies, your sign would say "liar" in big black latters. Or how about "anger", or how about ... you fill in the blank. Gays and lesbians alike have been targeted by Christians who have forgotten what our greatest calling is, to love, love, love. When I stand in front of Jesus one day, I want to be able to say that that's what I did. I don't want to have to tell him why I said (or even just thought) that a friend of mine was "clearly" going to hell because my interpretation of the Word was "clearly" the correct one.

Anyway, I know my conclusion is a bit weak here but I'm trying to put hours and hours of reading in to a blog :). Let me know what you think! As others have said, I'm not here trying to prove my point right or wrong, I'm just trying to be open and sincere with my thought process and trust that the Lord will guide me in my thoughts/actions every day.

The end.
PS: I love comments.
PPS: If anyone doesn't feel like sharing their opinion on this or their response on this with the world, then shoot me an e-mail at ambershomo@yahoo.com.

Hope and Politics

2008-10-17T20:25:00.000-07:00

Alright, the name of this post is totally misleading. Two seperate thought processes, one night.

Tonight I went to a "night of worship" at our Elliot St location church. It was not sponsored by our church, but by the church who rents the building on Sundays. It was AWESOME. There were well over 200 people there and we sang great songs of praise for two hours strait. Probably one of the best worship experiences I've had since Nazarene Youth Congress way back in 1999!! Wasn't due to the quality of the band (though they were great, and a combination of 9 churches!!), it was the spirit of the worship. So many people from so many different places coming together for one purpose. There was a little old lady who brought her tambourine with her and was just so cute. Thankfully she had rhythm! There were some people dancing around outside of the pews. Everyone seemed in their own little world, which was part of the reason it was so great. It was obvious that the people were excited about worship, and at least for me and probably others, it was encouraging to see so many people come together. I personally only knew two people. I wish more from my home church could have experienced the night, but all the women are away at retreat and the men are home watching the kids :). Hopefully I can convince some people to come next time since I'm sure this event will happen more often. Well, that's my HOPE section for the night. Gave me HOPE for this community, HOPE for unity among Christians, and I'm thankful that Jesus gives me these little reminders, just when I need them.

And now politics... AH forget it. Who wants to follow that with politics. I'll just say that I just watched 20/20 (don't ask me why I was watching that) and found even more reasons to NOT vote for either candidate!

The biggest book I've ever read...

2008-10-17T13:01:00.000-07:00

Recently a friend of mine has been challenging me through his own searching to really have a defence for what I believe. It is not enough nowadays to just believe in something, especially if that's the way you were brought up. Our generation is about individualism and rebellion and tolerance of every belief, idea, etc. A few years ago I attended a "Sunday school" class on apologetics. It wasn't long before I dropped out. I'm not sure why, it was genuinelly interesting, but my tolerance for the information obviously wasn't high enough. I've always had trouble with my attention span in any type of class - just ask all my highschool and college teachers that I fell asleep on! :) Anyway this friend of mine is searching for whether he believes in God, and if God, Jesus and the Christianity he was brought up with. He's not my only friend who's had these questions, but probably the only one that I've ever had the "privilege" of watching the journey first hand. Anyway I found myself seaking out books that touch on this subject. I went to CBD and not to my surprise there are SO MANY books out there. I really didn't want to waste my time reading 5 books that only lightly delve into the topics I'm looking for, so I found the biggest book out there. Josh McDowel's "A New Evidence that Demands a Verdict". This is the 2nd (or 3rd not sure) version of this book he's published. It is SEVEN HUNDRED pages long. The biggest book I've read to date was about 350. Not only is it 700 pages, but that doesn't include the introduction, and these are big pages, with small font. Maybe that doesn't phase a lot of you, but for me, the one with the attention span of a fish, it's slightly daunting. Well, so far I've gotten through about 60 pages. No, I've not read the chapters in order, or started from the beginning, that would be a rediculous thing to ask of me. I've read the whole 2nd chapter, half of the 1st, the 38th, and half of the introduction. Something about skipping around helps me not be overwhelmed with the shear amount of information I'm asking myself to absorb. I will say that so far it's REALLY interesting. The book is probably one of the best apologetics resources out there, and reads more like a text book than anything else. Another reason I like it is because McDowel started his investigation setting to prove out that God didn't exist. Therefore the information is not presented from someone who is only giving you the information they want you to have.

The majority of the information I've read thus far is about historical evidence for the Bible. Fascinating stuff!! I didn't realize there is such a MOUNTAIN of information proving the validity of the New Testament as a historical document (haven't read the part about the OT yet). Already, after just a few days of reading, I can now have a defense of Bible and be able to share partly of why I believe it is the ultimate truth, etc. Yes I know, it's a world of difference between defending a belief of the Bible as a solid historical document, and defending it is the inspired word of God - however I will get there in time. Please note - I already know my point of view and what I believe, I don't expect this book to change that. What I do expect and hope it will do is give me more solid, intellectual ground to discuss and or/defend my faith and why it will not be shaken.

Peace!! :)

bloggy blog blog

2008-10-14T12:05:00.000-07:00

I abandoned my xanga a while back, and gave up on the myspace/facebook blogging. I need more space and options! :) So here we go. There is no specific purpose of my blog. I'll just be writing randomly about things that interest me or just what I've been up to lately. Thanks for reading!