The Dying of The Light

"Do not go gentle into that good night,

Old age should burn and rave at close of day;

Rage, rage against the dying of the light."

-Dylan Thomas wrote these lines in 1947 in a time when our country was not facing the battle that's before us now, yet how appropriate are these words for Christians today.

This particular poem is about fighting against the dying of the light. Christians are not called to be silent, we are not called to fit in. 

Romans 12:2 says, "Do not be conformed (behave according to socially acceptable conventions or standards) to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you.] AMP

I've been unusually quiet since Target announced their new bathroom policy. Mainly it's because I wanted the chance to get to read through all the blogs and articles posted in the heat of the moment, each with different perspectives. However, there always seems to be an equal tone to most of these posts. More love and kindness, less judgment and bullying, and let's not forget: don't give Christians a bad name. Let me just get to the good stuff... Not all Christians signed the American Family Association's petition to boycott Target. I want so badly to say that I understand both sides... but I would be lying to you. So with love, and seasoned with salt, I'm going to give you my explanation for boycotting Target.

In the words of one of our founding fathers, "It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ!" (Patrick Henry) No matter how anyone tries to argue it, we are in fact a Christian nation, and God did have a hand in all the original documents of this country. Therefore, we must rage and fight against the dying of the light. In the Old Testament The Lord says, "Go down from here at once, because your people whom you brought out of Egypt have become corrupt. They have turned away quickly from what I commanded them and have made an idol for themselves."(Deuteronomy 9:12)

What if an authoritative figure in Sodom had stood up and said, "Enough of this, we've become corrupt and God is going to destroy us if we keep living like this"?

Let me make my stance very clear. This is not about hate. I wouldn't want anyone to be bullied or beaten down. What I don't understand is that if for some reason I felt more manly today, if I knew even for a second it would put my child in danger or scare them even in the slightest, I would find another way to deal with it.

"If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who 

believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to 

have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be

drowned in the depths of the sea.” -Matthew 18:6

There's a reason my blog is called "Raising A King."

We all become kings when we arrive at the opportunity to vote in America. We are not at the mercy of Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, or Donald Trump; they are at the mercy of us. In the Bible, the people of the cities were at the mercy of their kings. They didn't get to be apart of the big decision making process. We, however, do get to decide here in America. So being founded on Christianity and to keep God's hand of protection over us, we are all personally responsible for the decisions we make for our country. If Jesus came back today would He be pleased with our stewardship and the decisions we've made to keep our nation Holy? 

It is just not enough for us to sit down, keep quiet and hope that someone will realize we're Christians in the midst of darkness. You don't have to parade around the decisions you make and the way you vote. But vote and petition, and choose Biblically.

It's one thing to have always had these policies in your store and have always been "secular." However, it's another thing to announce it publicly to all of America that your bathrooms are now free game for everybody. And other stores have followed and you're now responsible for placing fear in the 1.2 million people who have signed that petition. Not out of hate, I remind you, but out of fear. I refuse to take part in planting seeds of fear, and to the ones who choose to do so, you're undeniably and immediately, now putting a whole lot of faith in a stranger to not take advantage of you or your children. And what people don't realize is that it doesn't even have to be physical abuse, there could be a man waiting in the next stall to peek over the top at your child and get his fix for the day. It's not about how you've probably already used the bathroom in the company of a transgender person, it's now about YOU and YOUR CHILD'S word against a sick person. Our society has rejected what was once considered normal as a crime of hate to keep our bathrooms the same. Every Christian who sits down and shuts up and refuses to be "judgmental" will be held accountable before Our King for how they guided this country.

And we do these things as the generation to come cries out:

"And you, my father, there on the sad height,

Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.

Do not go gentle into that good night.

Rage, rage against the dying of the light."

With Love,
Victoria Valentine & Tosha Smith

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The Decision That Ended A Life

Trust me, I've gone back and forth about writing this post a million times... Over and over again in my mind, whether or not it's the right thing to do. But then I realized it's not about what's right for me, it's about what's right for you, you who are reading this now. You might need this. To know that you are forgiven if you'll just ask for it. To know that Christ gives us strength in our weaknesses, no matter what they are. Or you might need to read this so that you will be able to forgive someone kind of like me.

I do want to make it clear though, despite my youthful actions, I absolutely do not stand for abortion. I pray God will have mercy on those who do. 

I know the repercussions of writing something like this. It's very controversial, and a very intense and touchy subject. Especially now. I know a lot of you will judge me. I know I'll be called a hypocrite or worse. I know women who have been through the same situation and are content with their choice, will criticize me.

However, aside from all the possible backlash, this is MINE. This is my story and my choice to write it out for you. No one can take it away from me. No one can change it.

I know God has forgiven me, and I have finally forgiven myself and repented and will never turn back. This is not me trying to reopen old wounds, this is me telling you that there is hope in The Lord. There is hope that you will be able to lift up your head again. To let the innocence of the lamb that was slain for us, lead you to the boldness of the lion again.

You do not have to stay hidden or silent about your beliefs because of your past.

I want to give you some Bible verses to keep in mind while pushing through this with me:

“This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” -Romans 3:22-24

“If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.” -1 John 1:8-10

_____________________________

This young woman got very lost in the world. On one of my very first nights of being in college and having an apartment with my roommate, we went to a party. It was right before my 19th birthday, almost 7 years ago. There was alcohol. So much so it's kind of a blur to me. I think you get the picture though. I was in a new town ready for a fresh start... and I ended up pregnant. I didn't have anyone to reel me back in. My mind wasn't set on Christ at the time, though I've always believed in God. But I didn't have anything that I really stood for. There were no lines. I got so angry after I found out. I always thought God had big plans for my life. I felt it deep down in my soul that I had been called for something great, but this, this was not what I expected. So out of anger about the whole situation, I acted unacceptably. I was mad, scared, sad and alone. Disappointed in myself. But mostly I let anger take over my mind. It was sort of a numbing effect to everything going on. I ended up making the worst decision of my entire life, to have an abortion.

There will be women who tell you they are content with their choice to do this, I don't buy it. They are hiding behind a delusional society who is telling them they are free to choose and that it will all be okay. That's the biggest lie. Let me tell you something, you will never be the same. We are all free to choose whether or not we murder someone, but we'll end up behind bars.

I knew in the back of my mind like we all do, it was wrong. I knew I should be punished. Punished with labor pains like Eve when she sinned. Punished with the pain of having to see what I had done, life that I chose to rip away. It was wrong. That wasn't my choice to make. I have to live with this decision for the rest of my life.

After I had Levi it hit me hard. I thought I had forgiven myself but I hadn't yet. It got harder for me to hold on to the pain. I would often find myself looking at Levi in awe and thinking, "What have I done?" 

But that's not who I am anymore. It doesn't have to consume you.
Jesus can heal you.
I once was lost but I've been found. 

This time it's a lot different though. More intimate, this is why I was created, to have a real relationship with Jesus. I never understood that until I came back to Him.

He leaves the ninety-nine to go after the one. And even though I acted out of His will, He still chooses to use me.
I am wired for battle, I am built for war.
And so are you.

This is not our decision to make. It is so wrong to choose whether or not we want ourselves or others to be able to end a life. Jesus doesn't preach that. Jesus died so that everyone could have life. There is no lukewarm, God says He will spit you out of His mouth; there is no one foot in and one foot out.

I know some will say they feel differently, have different beliefs, and try to throw a bunch of different scenarios out there, and I know I may fall under attack.
But just know that I've been there, I knew the whole time it felt wrong. Nothing about taking a life is right. I know some will think this is unorthodox and I shouldn't talk about it, but telling my story is worth it even if only one soul is touched by this. Even if only one woman feels comfort in knowing she's still loved and encouraged to become a child of God.
That's why I chose to write this. 
Because Jesus is saying to you, "You are forgiven."
Jesus is saying for you to, "Forgive because I forgave you." 

"Come back to me and follow my commands."


With Love,
Victoria V.



*Because this is such a controversial and personal subject, I won't be letting anyone post any comments on here or Facebook. Please just message me on Facebook if you feel you want to talk about anything. And please be kind with your words.

Choose Them & Disciple Them

As I was sitting down tonight to open my Bible and eat my little kitkat bar, after putting Levi to bed, I smiled to myself thinking about how much I love my beautiful baby. I can't get enough of him. Everything about him is precious, and pure and so innocent. And yet, throughout the day I continually find myself slipping away from him to do laundry, check social media, do dishes and sweep. It makes me feel so awful at the end of the day to think about all the moments that I let pass by, where I could've been setting all of that aside and making him laugh instead. Oh my goodness, his laugh... It consumes my heart. 

I know we all go through these mommy moments when we feel like we aren't enough for our children, or we don't do enough for our family sometimes. And especially giving God the time that He deserves from us. I've been feeling that a lot lately. Hence the reason why I've left the blog untouched. I'm definitely not one of those major multitasking moms that miraculously finds an immense amount of time to accomplish every goal in 24 hours with three kids and a job. Not me. Stay-at-home mom, one baby, and my day flies by in what seems like 10 minutes... Aside from all of that, the best part of my day is when I rock baby Levi to sleep. It's that one on one time, just me and him, singing songs that he hums along to with his sweet smile and cute baby voice. He is my angel. In those moments, it makes me feel a little better that I'm getting time to really love on him. I imagine that's how God feels on Sunday mornings, when He sees us praying and singing along, worshipping Him. Finally getting time to love on us from the crazy week, and He deserves way more than that. Our children also deserve more from us.

But there's something I read on a fellow mommy bloggers site, where she had a chalk board frame that she wrote in and it said, "Choose Them." She has it above the sink, where to be honest, we mommy's spend a lot of our time. So she can look up and remember that each moment is precious and to put down the dishes and Choose Your Children instead.

There's so much going on in the world today, so much violence and hate. It's so hard to think that our babies will one day be living in it too. As parents, we have the power and ability to choose our children, to teach them, guide them, and show them unconditional love. In the world today, it is absolutely crucial to make sure that our children know Jesus and His love for us. It is crucial that our children know how much we love them as well. Love them enough to throw the clothes in the basket and just go play legos. We have the ability to not only go out and make disciples of all nations, but to make disciples starting in our own home. Trust me, I am talking to myself as well. I just never want Levi to be in a situation where he will look at me with defeated eyes and say, "Where were you when I needed you?" I am not only his earthly mom, I am his sister in Christ. I was created to serve Jesus by serving him as well as everyone else. 

We also need to have the knowledge and therefore ability to explain the difference between friendship and fellowship to our children about who they choose to become close to in life as well. Of all the scriptures about Jesus eating and drinking with sinners, yes of course they are all true, but there wasn't a person who fellowshipped with Jesus that left unchanged. Even Judas Iscariot, one who seemed to be untouched by Jesus's teachings, in the end, he knew what he had done was very wrong, and ended up hanging himself.

The one person that I absolutely know is such a role model for this post is, of course, my mom. She's the real-life super woman. All of us girls are beautiful Christian women, and how she did it is a mystery to me. Actually that's a lie, I know how she did it. She's a prayer warrior. She has probably said millions and millions of prayers for all of us kids. She's been the best teacher I've ever had, which means she's been one of the best disciples of Christ. I want Levi to be able to say that about me too. 

Choose Them, Disciple Them, and love them with all your heart. Because bringing your own children to Christ is the best kind of witnessing you will ever do.

"But Jesus called the children to him and said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these."' -Luke 18:16


With Love,
Victoria V.

To Christians About Christians: The Word 'Negativity'

I've thought a lot about how I should word this post and how I should reflect love with these words I'm going to share. So I'm going to attempt to do my very best. So many Christians have chosen to close their ears to these issues that surround us and say that they don't care, and that we should choose love and acceptance over addressing the unbiblical. I just don't find that completely truthful.

I am just a Christian woman trying to do what God has called me to do with this blog. Staying silent and saying we don't care has gotten us where we are today, and there is too much at stake to keep that pattern. I hope that if you are reading this you will gain some understanding from my point of view.

I have read, heard, and seen a ton of Christians throw around the word negativity associated with trying to share knowledge about what God and the Bible asks of us in this season of so much defeat. I use the word defeat because I feel that's what's happening to us. A kind of "if you can't beat them join them" type of attitude; so no one will have anything bad to say about you or criticize you in any way. I never thought in my lifetime, a Christian would think Bible verses, or hearing from the Church and our Pastors, would be considered putting negativity in their life. That's very disheartening. It's almost as if some believe the term "Christian" has magically transformed into the term "Hippie." Instead of listening to a Pastor for instruction they'd rather stand for peace, love and everyone you meet is going to Heaven for being a good person. You can argue that it's not about Christianity or religion, that it's just about happiness and equal rights and that's what America is all about. However, that's not what was intended for this country at all. And if you are a Christian, shouldn't God and The Bible be what ultimately consumes your way of thinking and decision making process?

So let me ask this one question, why don't we care more about our brothers and sisters?

Instead we are crippling their walk.

We're crippling them by staying silent, we're crippling them by saying we shouldn't care about what people choose to do with their lives, we're crippling them by saying everyone deserves happiness and equal rights. We're crippling them by telling them not to say anything in fear of being called ignorant and intolerant, and to keep their mouths shut about these issues. Any way we try to argue it, we're still crippling them. And believe me there are people paying attention to the things you say.

"At one time it was good to have biblical morality, now it's bad, you're a prude. At one time it was good to believe in the Bible and stand with the Bible, now you're a bigot. Everything is absolutely reversed. The abnormal has now become normal and what used to make people ashamed now amuses them. An absolute turning of light and darkness." -Pastor John Lindell

The truth is though... above all of what anyone chooses to see in me or to call me, what I truly am is accountable. I am the one that will be held accountable in front of a Just, Holy, Almighty, and All-knowing God for letting my brothers and sisters play with fire. You will be held accountable as well.

I do feel that we need to humble ourselves and repent before we try to help anyone overcome any kind of tampering with sin. But at any cost, help them. Help them understand where we should stand in this nation right now, instead of causing confusion. Acknowledge that you know ALL sin that God diligently took the time to explain for us in His Word is wrong so someone else won't stumble.

"Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter." -Isaiah 5:20 NIV

"Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path." -Galatians 6:1

With love,
Victoria V.

A Letter To My Former Youth Ministers

I took a month off from writing to get a little break and reevaluate why I take writing so seriously. Then it dawned on me... I do this because of the people who had such a strong Godly impact on my life when I was growing up. When I was just a broken teenager without the presence of family, you became my family. You saw through the easily influenced side of me and helped mold me into a leader, the leader I thought I'd never be. In high school and middle school I always used to hear the phrase, "Be a leader not a follower," whether it be from my mom or from a mentor. And I always thought to myself, "I wish I could turn my life around and really be like that." I was never as devoted as I should've been and that's one of the things I regret the most. Only to one day realize and begin to truly appreciate the time and diligent teachings you invested to my life. I may not have fully understood then but I completely understand now how important and crucial our time was. Without your well prepared words given to you by God, I wouldn't be who I am today. I never thought in a million years God would place me and my family in a church that we have the opportunity to help build up and be leaders of.

I don't know how many "thank you's" you get from former students, but I wanted you to know that your time spent educating and in a way training me, was not wasted. Nothing that you do will ever be wasted. Your kind words and sometimes even scolding lectures will forever be with not only me, but all of the kids you've encountered. I finally understand how unyielding your job is. You have to be on constant guard of what you say and how you act because of those attentive eyes and ears following you. This country needs more men like you. I can only hope and pray that my son will also have amazing Godly mentors and ministers aside from his father. Someone he can talk to and confide in when life seems unbearable as a teenager. You not only gave me Godly wisdom, you gave me a second home to come to anytime I wanted. Your words impacted my life so much and I'm realizing that more and more every day. I will be forever grateful to you for being my brothers in Christ and also becoming the brother/father figures that lacked in my life. Thank you for pushing me to better myself as a Christian, and thank you for helping me discover those spiritual gifts I've been blessed with. To this day I pray for you and your beautiful families, for strength to always keep teaching and bringing the influence of God's Word to everyone you meet. 

You will always be in my heart, and I will always consider you my friend. Thank you for everything you've done for me.
(And I will probably always continue to ask you random questions that I can't quite figure out on my own.)

With Love,
Victoria V.