Ashley Sims

I learned (or maybe just thought of) something new this week. 

Let me start by saying I'm not trying to proudly display my religious zeal. I'm not trying to appear holier than thou because I pray in the streets without fear so I'm a better Christian than you! What I'm trying to do is not hide my light under a bushel. <--That will make more sense at the end :-)

I was at the grocery store and met someone new. She told me her neck had been hurting and I responded with how my back has been hurting. This woman seemed very nice and like the type who would pray for you right there in the moment. So immediately after telling her my back had been hurting I thought "Oh no, what if she wants to pray for me right here in the aisle?!" For reference we in one aisle on either side of it basically blocking passage through the aisle. Eventually I moved to her side of the aisle, but we were still blocking access to the bottled water as we talked. It was also a very busy day with many people around us. So anyway, I panic hoping she won't want to pray for me right there in front of everyone, then I immediately follow up that thought with, "Oh, maybe I should ask to pray for her right now." So then I didn't care if we were praying in the middle of the aisle. She changed the subject and I thought, "Whew, she didn't try to pray for me." Now feeling relieved. 

So in the span of like 60 seconds I felt fear and embarrassment about two people praying in the grocery store, then nonchalant and determined to pray to God, then relieved that we weren't going to pray in front of others. That was interesting. 

It wasn't until later that night when my back was hurting that I remembered her neck and said a prayer in my home alone. Then I reflected on the encounter and wondered, would I have prayed in grocery store? 

First and foremost I know I would've insisted that we move to an area where we weren't blocking people from access to products. But...imagine you are at the grocery store, and there by one of the temporary displays put up between the cold cuts wall and dry food aisles you see two people, heads bowed, palms open, praying out loud. I have never seen that before. Maybe if there was an incident, like someone was having a heart attack and managers were around and EMS was there, then maybe there might be one person there also praying over the body on the floor. But never in a safe situation have I seen someone praying in the grocery store. 

Two days later it occurred to me that we could just go the restroom for more privacy to pray. And I think if it was a prayer about private parts or undesireable addictions (I won't get specific), then sure going to a private space like the restroom or someone's car makes sense. But what about back pain or neck pain? Or fear of an upcoming exam? Maybe the hope to get that house they put an offer on. Why should we need to seclude ourselves for that?

Imagine that we lived in a fully Christian world. We would see prayer ALL the time! Both people praying for each other, and people just talking to God. When we saw someone having a conversation with seemingly no one, we wouldn't think, "they must be hallucinating", we would think, "they're talking to God".

The only reason I can think of to hide, is because by praying publicly like that, in a secular place, we might "offend" someone who is not Christian. Because we're not blocking the aisle, we're not blocking access to products, we're not talking about private parts or more adult themed things that a passing child should not hear...and I'm not talking about Holy Spirit EMPOWERMENT convulsing on the floor prayer. I mean just a simple, "Heavenly Father, please lay your hands on Ashley's back and heal whatever it is that is causing pain. Whether it be the bones, the muscles, maybe she pulled something, Lord you know what is wrong and we just ask that you please give her swift healing. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen." Simple. Why can't we do that? Why don't we do that? Granted that simple prayer may still leave me convulsing on the floor..who knows what God will do? LOL But still, why would I...am I allowing the potential offense of some stranger to prevent me from trying to help my sister in Christ? 

Thankfully I am still in contact with this woman, but what if that was it, we made some small talk and went our separate ways? I missed out on a chance to be of service to a fellow believer. Maybe God specifically put us in each others' path to pray over each other for healing. But my concern for the opinions of others got in the way. 

And then I thought, what if I was the passerby witnessing two other people praying? Would I jump in? Again, in a fully Christian world, not only would I jump in, but likely the whole store would drop what they were doing and lay hands on those two people. Sure there's a chance that these two might be offended that I joined in their prayer uninvited, but I would rather jump in and raise more voices to God on their behalf, then stay away out of fear. Which God did not give us by the way. Also they're praying publicly in a grocery store so I feel they should expect jump-ins LOL.

I've decided: I want to be someone who if you tell me you need prayer, instead of saying that I will say a prayer for you "tonight", I will just move out of the way of others, and pray for you right then and there. No matter who is around to see it. Unless of course it's inappropriate or you specifically don't want people to know you're afraid of the upcoming exam. No...I take that back...I will pray in that moment anyway, just not out loud. So people would still see us with our heads bowed and palms open. 

LET ME CLEAR!!!!!!!!!

I know the Bible talks about going into your upper room and praying in secret. So let me just be clear that this isn't something I want to do in order to draw attention to us, or to shove our religion into the faces of non-Christians. What I'm talking about is praying despite the fear of being judged for it. Solomon tells us that there is a time and a place for everything, so use discerment; is this a prayer that you should say alone in your home? Or one that the two of you should say now, but go to the restroom/car/less public place? Or is this something that you can just pray about in aisle real quick without feeling any shame for doing it? That's what I'm getting at. I'm not trying to proudly display my religious zeal. I'm not trying to appear holier than thou because I pray in the streets without fear so I'm a better Christian than you! What I'm trying to do is not put my light under a bushel. 

If we hadn't exchanged numbers, if it was just a one-off interaction, I would've loved to say, "do you mind if I pray for neck really quick?" Then step off to the side, out of the way, and just say a prayer. The end. No big deal. I would love to see people praying more outside of the church. Just in the streets. More than just wearing a cross necklace to show who I belong to. 

Well...do what you will with that. I'm going to try to not be so embarrassed or afraid. 

I was looking around the house one day and realized there is no God in my house. Sure He's there is Spirit, but there is no evidence that this house is a Christian home to the naked eye. If a non-Christian person walked in to my home, they would have no idea that I am a Christian. 

God tells us we should reflect His radiance to the world. There are many ways we do this including with our houses. "The the glory of the Lord rose from above the cherubim and moved to the threshold of the temple. The cloud filled the temple, and the court was full of the radiance of the glory of the Lord." -Ezekiel 10:4, NIV. This verse doesn't say "decorate your house with Jesus stuff", and our bodies are often referred to as the "Temple" of the Holy Spirit, but even so, I think it just makes sense that your house should reflect His radiance. 

Have you ever seen that Jesus picture that looks like He's peaking around a corner at you? It has the caption "I saw that". Not only does Jesus décor make your house look like it belongs to a Christian, but it helps you to be a better Christian. It's kind of difficult to engage in sin when you look up and see Jesus staring at you. And if you do succumb to the sin, that image on your wall can help remind you to repent and ask for forgiveness right away. I know if I sin, I tend to think "I'll ask for forgiveness in my prayers tonight." Then I'll forget all about it and go to bed. 

And there's something safe about walking into a house with Jesus décor. Maybe a non-Christian would find it creepy or weird, but for me, a Christian, when I enter a home with crosses or biblical pictures on the walls, I just feel safer, and the presence of the Holy Spirit seems stronger there too. I've never been financially able to afford Christian décor (that stuff is expensive!) so in my last apartment I just wrote scriptures on colored paper and taped them to the walls. It looked so tacky. But when I saw them, I didn't see tacky, I saw the words and was reminded of God's love for me. 

The only time I ever felt embarrassed by them was when the complex redid the windows and about 5-6 guys were in and out of my place installing the windows. At one point one of the men stopped and read some of them, then asked me if he could take a picture. I told him they were in the Bible, and he said something along the lines of he never read it, or hadn't in a long time. Anyway, I inadvertently witnessed to him that day, and he left with some scriptures to read. As he was leaving I overheard him talking to another guy about the scriptures. He wasn't making fun of me; he was actually really interested in them! See? Reflect God's radiance, even inside you homes :-)

Anyone watch Reels? Instagram, FB, Tik Tok, YT, etc; I've seen several good, Christian videos that unfortunately have background music that is incredibly s*xual or actually blasphemous. I understand there is an algorithm that likes certain popular songs and will play videos with those songs in them moreso then other videos. But when your Christian message involves bad music, you loose credibility and your message falls on deaf ears. You know those videos that show the person pointing up, and then words or phrases appear in the place they're pointing, and there's some random background music. So it shows a person that claims to be Christian and they point up to phrases like "Jesus loves you", "Jesus is Lord of all", etc. This looks good, except, the background music is "Holy F*ck" by Demi Lovato. You can google those blasphemous lyrics yourself, I won't write them here. The algorithm loves that song, and I get that you want your video to get more views, but when you have a song like that on your Christian video, you will automatically be perceived as a wolf in sheep's clothing. You immediately loose all credibility, OR, worse, you make other new Christians believe that a song like that is ok to listen to as a Christian; that God is fine with that kind of song. Let the algorithm go, choose a Godly song instead.  

Alright, this one's more of a vent, but I think I make a good point. 

I grew up on secular music (Spice Girls, Britney Spears, Aqua, etc) and now I only listen to Christian music. While I have no issue with "missing out" on the new [secular] music of today, I do have an issue with missing the old music. The nostalgia I feel when I hear a Spice Girls song on a store radio...it makes me want to hear more of that group, and all the other music I used to like. 

When I do indulge the feeling and listen to a 90's playlist, it doesn't take long for me to recognize all the bad things in the songs. They are mostly about s3x, but there's also m*rd3r and theft and all sorts of things that no child should be listening to, and most adults shouldn't. Why did my parents let me listen to this stuff?! No, wait, why did my CHRISTIAN parents let me listen to this stuff?!

I know why...because although we were a Christian family and went to church, the neighborhood kids and the school kids were not Christian. The only options for playmates I had were kids that did not know Jesus. Not only did this affect what music I listened to, but it also put me in many bad situations throughout my life. So I guess I'm also compelling parents to make sure your kids have Christian friends. Even if the family is a different denomination, or more "nominal" than yours, it's still better than the secular friends. At least that what my experience has been. 

Now as an adult, I wish so badly that I had Christian nostalgia music to listen to. I wish that when I heard a Spice Girl song it sounded unfamiliar to me. I wish I could pull out an old Barlow Girl CD and feel that nostalgia, but instead, despite that group being old, their music is fairly new to me. 

Parents I implore you to pay attention to what your kids are listening to! Don't let it slide because it's popular or because you think your kids are too young to understand the lyrics, or because you think that you turned out fine despite listening to secular music yourself. The lyrics sink into the soul and stay with you forever. Let only that which is good to be absorbed by your children. And by yourself.

Ok, rant over. 

Have you ever felt God call you to give up something you enjoy? Some might tell you to take the loss and don't ask questions. But God doesn't think that way; you're allowed to ask questions, and you're allowed to ask for replacements. In fact, you should ask questions if God tells you to give something up so that you can better understand why this thing was/is bad in Gods' eyes. Some things are obvious like alcohol or p*rn, but other times God may tell you give up something not so obvious like a show that's rated PG. Sometimes it's not the thing that is bad, but rather the way it affects you specifically. And God doesn't mind if you ask for a replacement. He may not always give you one, but it is not rude or "unGodly" to ask. In my case, He has provided some replacements. 

~~Story Time~~

Years ago God called me to stop listening to secular music. I was shocked! I gave it a try, switched to only Christian music for a few weeks and...it sucked! It was so bland. I like all music but I'm a rocker first. I also like rap and EDM, but the Christian stuff was just soft and fluffy. I told Him that if He wanted me to switch, then He needed to make some better Christian music. In hindsight, I could've been much nicer about it. But God is good and patient. Two years later I felt the call again. I was so disappointed, but I obeyed. To my utter astonishment I liked it! God really listened to my...harsh demand, if we're being honest, and created new music. New artists, rock included, and older artists updated their sounds to be more modern. It was so exciting to have all new music in every genre, and all approved by God! Since then, I have only listened to Christian music, with a few instrumental exceptions (like Beethoven). In this story I didn't really ask God, I basically laughed in His face at His music and said no. But thankfully He didn't get mad, and instead, He very nicely put me in my place. LOL! 

Not long after this, I was telling this story to my uncle and he said he'd recently had a similar experience. God called him to stop watching the shows he was watching. My uncle is a Godly man (now a Reverend) so I know he wasn't watching anything like Saw, but apparently whatever it was, God wanted him to stop. So he (kindly) asked God to show him what he could watch and God gave him Old Westerns. My uncle had never cared for those before, but told me that he was really enjoying them! So my uncle asked for a replacement and God gave him one. 

A time I didn't get a replacement was with House. I loved watching the show House as a teen. As a late 20's I decided to watch it again. I was anxious almost daily and angry, so God told me to stop watching it. See the thing is, most of the ailments in House are fake, and the doctors/interns do far more than what happens in real life. I have Health Anxiety and while I'm on the lesser end of that spectrum, watching something like House pushed me more and more into fear. What if I have that illness? Why don't my doctors go above and beyond like that? What if they're missing something? What if What if What if....So God said "Stop watching that show, it's bad for your mental health!" I asked Him, "What do I watch then?" and He said __________. I felt that maybe His silence simply meant that there are a million other things I could watch, and He didn't care what I chose, just stop watching House. So that's what I did and my mental health greatly improved.

My most recent "give up" story happened last week. I was reading a story about someone else who was called to give up secular music, and I thought "I wonder if there's anything else God will call me to give up; TV shows, movies, video games--" The Holy Spirit interrupted my thought and said "Assassin's Creed (AC)". I sat stunned for a few minutes. 

"Wait, wait, He's gonna make me give up Assassin's Creed?!"

"Yes"

"But...but...I only play AC and TR!....really?!"

"Yes"

"But...I mean...I get it...but...really?! Right now?"

"No, but the call will come."

"When?!"

*Crickets*

I sat in silence for a while mowing it over in my mind. 

"Can I have a replacement?" 

*Crickets*

"Am I supposed to make the replacement?"

I had become fed up with the fact that there were no Christian video games just 1 week prior to all this, and decided I would just make one myself. I downloaded the software and took my first class of a video game making course. But I don't plan to finish my game for another 10 years or so. To be clear, there are children's video games about Jesus or trivia, but there aren't any teen/adult games comparable to all the secular ones. I never understood why the Christian community didn't make any. God didn't answer those questions that night, but 2 days later I saw an ad for Gate Zero. It's a new Bible-based video game that actually looks comparable to secular games. Apparently there are other Christians out there that had the same thoughts I did and decided that if no one else would make a game, then they will. 

I took that as Gods' answer. I can still work on my game idea, but there will be something for me to play in the meantime. Gate Zero isn't supposed to be released until 2024 so I'm guessing I have until then to play AC before I have to give it up. Of course God didn't say that; He could tell me to throw them out tomorrow, but to my human logic it makes sense that it would be 2024. Thing is though, I started playing AC2 and was really enjoying it, then this conversation happened, then while playing again it was no longer fun. God...are you slowly changing my perceptions so it will be easier to get rid of them when the time comes? He might be, and I'm alright with that.

Point is, remember that God knows what is best for you, so if He calls you to give something up, you should listen. But don't be afraid to ask for a replacement, because He might just give you one. God Bless! :-)