Regret, The Monster Inside

         In life, we usually end up having a few regrets, some greater than others. My biggest regret is probably a regret over someone I never got to know. He was the little brother of a couple friends of mine, and he was what I call a beautiful soul. When he smiled, he could light up any room, he was full of kindness and forgiveness. At only 13, he lived his faith every single day. He loved to have fun with his friends, and his joy came from the Lord and not circumstances. A beautiful soul. Late December 2013 he died. It was an accident, he was playing on a rope swing and somehow it got tangled around his throat. By the time his family found him, it was too late. His family and friends were devastated, but they pulled through. Still, I felt guilty every time I comforted someone. Did I really have the right to comfort them when I hadn't even taken the time to know this wonderful kid? Every year late December the regret comes back, and it's a monster. I tears at me and tells me that I'm a horrible person. That I'm selfish and useless, because of one small thing. Regret is not to be taken lightly. If you let it, it will crush your spirit and steal your confidence. A quote from Lion King comes to mind "You can either run from your past, or learn from it." ~Rafiki. Ah, that wise, crazy old baboon. That quote is one of my very favorites, because it can be applied to so much. In the Lion King, after Mufasa dies, Scar tells Simba that it's Simba's fault Mufasa is dead. From then on, fear and regret take over, and Simba runs. He avoids his past, because if he thinks about it, the regret comes back, and all the feelings of uselessness. You can't wallow in regret, it will destroy you. You can't run from your past, it will always catch up with you. But you can learn from every thing that has ever happened in your past. You can't change the past, so letting it determine who you are is a dangerous path of constantly losing your self-worth and climbing down into deeper gutters, because you believe that's what you deserve. Don't. Every mistake, and every shot not taken. Every regret that stains your past is the very thing that enables you to become a better you. Everything you've done wrong is a lesson, so learn it, and let it help you make better decisions in the future. There's a reason I'm posting this today. Starting midnight, it will be a new year. 2016. 2016 is not a new beginning, it not a fresh start, is not a new chapter unless you MAKE it one. So please, let go of your regrets, take up your lessons, and make this a new and beautiful year, because you CAN!!! And remember that in this new year, you can and should make plans, and have hope, but you are not your own master, and greater things are at work. "Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand." ~Proverbs 19:21

                                         ~Katie Stone~

So, About the Refugees...

     Okay, so normally I'm not one to talk on social media about a lot of current events. Who's listening anyway? However, I need to say something now to anyone who might be listening. What is this nonsense about completely closing our borders?! Look, I understand. There are a suspicious amount of fighting age men entering our country from Syria, they probably aren't refugees. I also understand that there are just as many families. Mothers, fathers, children, trying to flee from ISIS, desperate to get their families away from this persecution. I know that it can be hard to figure out who's a threat and who's not, but we live in the 21st century people! Never before in History have we had so much information at our fingertips! Are we really unwilling to try a little, for the sake of these families? For many years, people have viewed America as a place of light and hope. A country based on the Christian faith, full of compassion, mercy, refuge, and morality. Now I know we've been going downhill fast, but how can you pretend to be against ISIS when you're working for them? Some of these people may not really be refugees, but many are, and if everyone closes their borders out of fear and selfishness, then where can they go? They go back to Syria where they will face persecution. They are desperate and alone, fleeing anywhere they can. Weren't we all once? Fleeing from a country, or fleeing from our sin. Is there a difference? Can we call ourselves Americans if we do not accept those who flee as we once did? Can we call ourselves Christians when we will not accept those who are lost as we once were? If there is no hope, no compassion, no mercy, and no willingness to take a risk, then who are we really? Sometimes, not helping is the same as hurting. Above all, remember this... "After they were gone, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Get up! Take the child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you. For Herod is about to search for the child to destroy Him." ~Matthew 2:13 Friends, Jesus was a refugee. Would you turn Him away out of fear?
                                        ~Katie Stone~