When you heat up gold, all the impurities rise to the surface. Those impurities are called dross. This is what I believe has been happening in my life this past week. My life is being purified through holy fire, it's unfortunate that some relationships have been severed but perhaps I'm going to be better off, and better suited to do God's Will for my life. Like a song they sing at Calvary Chapel says, "Purify my heart, let me be as gold and precious silver. Purify my heart, let me be as gold, pure gold. Refiner's fire, my heart's one desire is to be holy. Set apart for You, Lord. I choose to be holy. Set apart for You, my Master, ready to do your will."

An old friend from high school, who is a member of the opposite sex, has been in a bad relationship, filled with abominations in God's eyes. As she was getting frustrated with this guy, I offered her a place to stay at my house (which I inherited from my grandma) in order to get away from this guy. The next week, she decided to take me up on the offer.

I helped her move in to my laundry room, and surprisingly all her stuff fit in there. Since Vaughn and I don't use the laundry room at all, it worked out very well. We do our laundry next door, at my parent's house (yes I live next door to my parents). I offered her free rent through August 27th, and $200 per month after that. Since she was getting free rent, she offered to help clean as well. I like things near spotless, since I am a clean freak...unless it's my own mess, in which case it doesn't bother me for some strange reason.

Ma Baker knew it was a bad idea from day 1. I spent hours trying to talk Ma Baker into allowing me to let her move in. I explained to Ma Baker that she was trying to get away from a guy who was an overall bad influence, leading her down the path to destruction. Finally, Ma Baker reluctantly agreed.

My 3 simple conditions: 1) This guy is never to come over. 2) No friends after 10 PM, excluding her best friend, who was also a good friend of mine. She could stay as long as she wanted. 3) Church, every Sunday at Calvary Chapel AV, without exception.

She kept bugging me the night before because she was spending the night with her best friend, saying "I don't want to go to church" and my reply was "do you want to stay here next week?", she said "yes" and I said "then I'll see you in the morning". In the morning I got a text from her best friend saying it was illegal to force her to go to church. That was one of my conditions, and if she didn't want to abide by them, she didn't have to live here. I let it go that weekend, but we had a chat afterward saying that it is a condition and I won't make an exception again.

Other than that little fiasco, everything else was going well. It was working out pretty well. Until, her ex-boyfriend, that she came to my place to get away from, started talking to her again. She asked me to drop her off at his street, and I blew a fuse, because this was not good. Nothing good would come of this. Both myself and her best friend decided to set aside our differences and try to help her as best as we could. She brushed the both of us off, and wouldn't take the advise of anyone but her ex. All of her friends disliked her ex, and her ex disliked all of her friends.

Knowing the things she had told me about her ex. It began making me physically ill, because I have a heart for outreach to the broken and lead them into that life changing relationship with Jesus Christ. I knew that her hanging out with this guy again would be a major stumbling block in her life, hindering work that God was trying to do in her life.

I told Ma Baker what was going on and Ma Baker immediately began to say "okay, if she's going to hang out with him again, she's out".

I told her that we were all going to sit down together and have a chat. Allow me to share our conversation via text message. I'll replace her ex's name with "***".

Me: We're all going to sit down and chat at 4 PM, me, my family, and you. Be there!

Her: Why? I have done NOTHING wrong. It's not my fault that you are jealous of ***

Her: And why would you bring your family into this? thats childish

Her: I can hang out with whomever I want to hang out with. Just because I live with you doesn't mean you can control my life. and if that's how it's gonna be, i'll leave.

Her: I moved in because living with *** is hard for me. However, him and me are still friends and hanging out with him a few times a week is completely different from living with him. I am getting sick of you pressuring me into doing things I don't want to do (referring to making her attend church and bible studies). You are far worse than he was.

Her: My relationships with other people are MY business, not yours.

Me: I put up a fight to get you to stay there, and the reason was so that you could get away from ***. Since you're hanging with him again, then you have to need to have your stuff take up space in my house when you're never there. I was going to have us all talk calmly and rationally (because my parents foot the bill), but I can send Ma Baker over there to go off on you with a short temper if you'd rather have that. All of your friends have perfectly good reasons to dislike ***, he doesn't care about your best interest. (her best friend) says you like to learn the hard way, so we're gonna show tough love and let you find things out the hard way. My parents will be over there shortly to help you move to the location of your choosing. Have a nice life.

Her: My stuff takes up space whether I am there or not. The only difference is that when I am NOT there it saves money on electricity and water and what not. I am Am doing nothing wrong. You can't expect me to be home ALL the time. *** DOES care about my best interest, which is why he is always there the help when I need him, even if we aren't getting along. None of you guys have a valid reason to not like him. You don't even KNOW him.

Me: (I described some examples of things he's forced her to do. Threatening to kill himself if she doesn't do it.)

Her: Whammy, he has different moral than you do, he isn't a Christian and ...(I'm not going to repeat that here)... I forgave him for that a long time ago. He .... and can't even .... the .... he already has. I can't believe you are kicking me out because I choose to stay his friend. You are being ridiculous. And if you think that you are helping me, you are dead wrong. I would end up going back to ***'s.

Me: We gave you a place to stay because you wanted to get away from him, but now you're around him again. That reason we were helping you is gone. Go back to *** if you feel so strongly for him. We've all noticed a change in you, and definitely not for the better. You're better than this.

Her: The reason I moved out was not to live with him. It wasn't to get away from him permanently, and not be his friend. I told you, living with him is completely different from living with him (huh?). You never said I can never hang out with *** to live here. You just said I can't have him over.

Me: That was the reason we spoke about that Thursday night, now you're changing your own story. I know you, you were happier, friendlier, now all you listen to is ***. We care about you, and we want what's best for you. We've been trying to help, but you brush us off because he's got you so brainwashed into thinking he's the only positive influence in your life. We've tried, but you've left us with no other option.

Her: I am the same person! and no, you don't do what's best for me. If you did, you wouldn't be kicking me out right now out of selfish reasons.

Well, kicking her out wasn't exactly my decision in the first place. She didn't seem to be very receptive of that fact. Within about an hour I received a letter from her ex which said the following:

"You should be ashamed of yourself. Your small mind and even smaller heart are the very antithesis of the doctrine you claim to follow. You are a hypocrite of the worst degree, and may all the powers see fit to swiftly collect the karmic debt your black acts have charged to your spirit. Cherish the illusions of happiness you think you have, for oblivion is hungry, and your name is its knell."

Hmmm...it causes me to wonder how long it took him to come up with that. It almost sounds like something he would have gotten out of a book or something. I had to read it over several times before I could even grasp the meaning, and I had to even look up the word "knell" in the dictionary.

Knell

-noun

1. the sound made by a bell rung slowly, especially for a death or a funeral.

2. a sound or sign announcing the death of a person or the end, extinction, failure, etc., of something.

3. any mournful sound

Allow me to dissect this statement and show the inaccuracies...

{"You should be ashamed of yourself."}

-Of what should I be ashamed? She went against the very reason she decided to move in here in the first place. Plus the decision to kick her out wasn't entirely mine in the first place. Plus, she made it pretty clear she didn't want to abide by my third condition (church attendance). If she didn't want to abide by my conditions, she didn't have to stay. It wasn't like we were holding her here against her will.

I will not be ashamed for making church attendance a condition for living at my house. I will not be ashamed for making people get outside of their comfort zones in order to deal with sin in their lives.

"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith." For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown [it] to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible [attributes] are clearly seen, being understood by things that are made, [even] His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify [Him] as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and they changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man--and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things. Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen." -Romans 1:16-25 (NKJV)

{"Your small mind and even smaller heart are the very antithesis of the doctrine you claim to follow."}

-In Matthew 18, it talks about a method about dealing with similar issues, it says "...go privately and point out the fault. If the person listens and confesses it, you have won that person back. But if you are unsuccessful, take one or two others with you and go back again, so that everything you say may be confirmed by two or three witnesses. If that person still refuses to listen, take your case to the church. If the church decides you are right, but the other person won't accept it, treat that person as a pagan or a corrupt tax collector." -Matthew 18:15b-18 (NLT)

Well, her best friend, Vaughn, and Ben were involved, we tried to explain that he was just no good for her, but she refused to see it. I brought it up to Pastor Rich, and it seemed like he objected to her living in my house in the first place, as he recommended that I listen to his study "Wisdom & Lust" (which I still need to do). I really shouldn't have even allowed her to move in under my roof at all. That is what I did wrong in this situation. Having someone of the opposite sex living under the same roof as you is considered making provision for the flesh which can lead to sexual immorality. Not just me, but Vaughn lives here too.

"Let us walk properly, as in the day not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust not in strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to [fulfill its] lusts." -Romans 13:13-14 (NKJV)

"And don't forget the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring towns, which were filled with sexual immorality and every kind of sexual perversion. Those cities were destroyed by fire and are a warning of the eternal fire that will punish all who are evil." -Jude 1:7 (NLT)

{"You are a hypocrite of the worst degree,"}

-How I handled the situation was in accordance with the Bible, and if I handled it biblically to the best of my abilities, then that cannot make me a hypocrite. Letting her move in to my house in the first place was hypocritical of me, and I admit it and apologize.

Also, everybody is a hypocrite to a certain degree (especially me), nobody can keep the laws of the Bible perfectly, and with human nature being the way it is, people can't even keep their own man made set of values. Even though I haven't done many things wrong from a worldly point of view, there are times when I feel like I'm the worst sinner in the world.

"As it is written: "There is none righteous" no, not one; there is none who understands; there is none who seeks after God. They have all turned aside; they have together become unprofitable; there is none who does good, no, not one" "Their throat is an open tomb; With their tongues they have practiced deceit"; "The poison of asps is under their lips"; "Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness." "Their feet are swift to shed blood; Destruction and misery are in their ways; And the way of peace they have not known." "There is no fear of God before their eyes." -Romans 3:10-18 (NKJV)

{"and may all the powers see fit to swiftly collect the karmic debt your black acts have charged to your spirit."}

-The powers...wow! Since I know that he refers to himself as being "spiritual but not religious", that pretty much says it all. Christianity is beyond a religion, it's true reality and a true relationship with the one true and living God, but I won't get into that right now. Usually people who regard themselves as "spiritual" deal a lot with spiritual entities from the demonic realm, but are so deceived by them as not to comprehend the destructive capacity. Usually these spirits can inhabit or posses those who are not saved, but cannot inhabit or posses those who have the Holy Spirit dwelling within them. These evil spirits are referred to in the Bible as "familiar spirits", people who have one of these spirits for personal gain are referred to as a "medium". Let's take as look at what the Bible says.

'Give no regard to mediums and familiar spirits; do not seek after them, to be defiled by them: I [am] the LORD your GOD.' -Leviticus 19:31 (NKJV)

'And the person who turns to mediums and familiar spirits, to prostitute himself with them, I will set My face against that person and cut him off from his people.' -Leviticus 20:6 (NKJV)

'A man or a woman who is a medium, or has familiar spirits, shall surely be put to death; they shall stone them with stones. Their blood [shall be] upon them.' -Leviticus 20:27 (NKJV)

That pretty much says it as far as "the powers" go. I do not have to worry about his "powers" because of the Holy Spirit which dwells within me. The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 6:14: "For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?".

How do we know that the Holy Spirit dwells in us as followers of Christ?

"Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit [who is] in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?" -1 Corinthans 6:19 (NKJV)

What else can the Bible say about this portion of the letter?

"Bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you." -Luke 6:28 (NKJV)

What have I been doing? I have been praying for these two every night, plus together in fellowship with other believers at CCAV's Thursday night college group, and I went up to a member of Revival's prayer ministry team and prayed with them about these two as well. In my personal prayers, I pray "God, for each curse they send my way, send back triple in blessings". I would still like to know how I've been hypocritical in this regard.

Also, I would really like to know this, who decides if someone has a "karmic debt" in the first place? Who decides what that debt is? The guy who sent me this letter? No, God is the only one who can judge something like that.

"For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's." -1 Corinthians 6:20 (NKJV)

{"Cherish the illusions of happiness you think you have, for oblivion is hungry, and your name is its knell."}

-"For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." -1 Corinthians 1:18 (NKJV)

"The tongue of the wise uses knowledge rightly, but the mouth of fools pours forth foolishness." -Proverbs 15:2 (NKJV)

"And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart" -Jeremiah 29:13 (NKJV)

She later replied to his message, "haha, well said and incredibly articulate. you're awesome." It's sad to see that she's bought into his lies.

"For the Scriptures say, 'If you want a happy life and good days, keep your tongue from speaking evil and keep your lips from telling lies. Turn away from evil and do good. Work hard at living in peace with others. The eyes of the Lord watch over those who do right, and his ears are open to their prayers. But the Lord turns his face against those who do evil.' Now, who will want to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don't be afraid and don't worry. Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if you are asked about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it. But you must do this in a gentle and respectful way. Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak evil against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ. Remember, it is better to suffer for doing good, if that is what God wants, then to suffer for doing wrong!" -1 Peter 3:10-17 (NLT)

Moving on... Later that night Vaughn received text messages from her saying "Whammy kicked me out because he is a jealous b*****d". Ma Baker caught wind of these messages and told her as she was packing that if anybody received any more messages from her calling me names, they'd take her to court. As she was packing, she started to back talk to Ma Baker, and Ma Baker just said "don't talk, just listen", she replied "if I can't speak, then you don't speak to me either", Ma Baker said in response "The devil always collects his dues, and you're standing with both feet in Hell." At that point she started to cry. This shows that this remark obviously struck a chord in her heart, perhaps a sudden realization of reality.

"There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit." -Romans 8:1 (NKJV)

"Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about the things that please the Spirit. If your sinful nature controls your mind, there is death. But if the Holy Spirit controls your mind, there is life and peace. For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God's laws, and it never will. That's why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God." -Romans 8:5-8 (NLT)

In reference to the text messages she has been sending, Ma Baker then said to my dad "I want her in court!" the weeps grew louder. You might say, "doesn't the Bible say not to take people to court?". Yes, the Bible explains not to sue fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, but she clearly told me "I don't know what I believe." meaning that she hasn't received Jesus as her personal savior. From personal experience, I've heard it enough to know that saying "I don't know what I believe" is just a cop out, a cowardly thing to say, because you don't want to deal with the reality of sin in your life.

"Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God. All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any. Foods for the stomach and the stomach for foods, but God will destroy both it and them. Now the body [is] not for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body." -1 Corinthians 6:9-13 (NKJV)

Many people will argue with me about "oh we're saved by grace", yes this is true because there is no way to earn our salvation. However, if you fit the criteria of the list above, can you really call yourself a Christian in the first place? If you participate in fornication or adultery or theft or homosexuality or drinking or extortion etc. and still claim to be walking with God, then YOU ARE A LIAR! LYING IS ANOTHER SIN! If you are in a place of participating in one or more of these things, then you are on scary grounds! How can you call yourself a Christian and do these things without immediately after feeling the conviction of the Holy Spirit and being in a place of repentance? If you do fall into one of these sins, and have a repentant heart afterward, then you're okay. God is merciful, but you must be sincerely repentant and not calloused to sinful acts.

"Now turn from your sins and turn to God, so you can be cleansed of your sins. Then wonderful times of refreshment will come from the presence of the Lord, and he will send Jesus your Messiah to you again." -Acts 3:19-20 (NLT)

"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus." -Romans 3:23-24 (NKJV)

"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; [it is] the gift of God, not of works lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." -Ephesians 2:8-10 (NKJV)

A common thing I hear is, "As long as you're a good person, no god anywhere cares what you believe.", and again I say, who makes that decision? Who defines what is good enough? You? Do you really think you can set your own rules as you see fit and force God go along with your set of rules? That's funny.

"...Then the LORD said in His heart, "...the imagination of man's heart [is] evil from his youth..." -Genesis 8:21 (NKJV)

"For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one [point], he is guilty of all." -James 2:10 (NKJV)

You might say to me, "I would never believe in a god that is so cold hearted as to send somebody to Hell." Well, God would never send you there in the first place! It's because that you, being an unbeliever, are making a choice and callousing yourself to the truth. Why would you want to be with Him for eternity when you've spent your entire earthly life conditioning yourself to be independent from Him, maybe He's doing you a favor by not forcing you to spend eternity with Him. Hell was never meant for people, it was a place that God designed for Satan and his demons. The only people who go there are the ones that go there by their own choice, the choice of rejecting the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross to separate you from your sins.

"The Lord is not slack concerning [His] promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance." -2 Peter 3:9 (NKJV)

"For the wages of sin [is] death, but the gift of God [is] eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." -Romans 6:23 (NKJV)

"But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." -Romans 5:8 (NKJV)

"...if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." -Romans 10:9 (NKJV)

"Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." -Romans 5:1 (NKJV)

"And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from his love. Death can't, and life can't. The angels can't, and the demons can't. Our fears for today, our worries about tomorrow, and even the powers of hell can't keep God's love away. Whether we are high above the sky or in the deepest ocean, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord." -Romans 8:38-39 (NLT)

Joel Osteen's Hope Note for Romans 8:38 in the Hope For Today Bible says, "God's love goes way beyond any human love you have ever experienced! People may come and go from your life, but God is always with you. He will never leave you nor forsake you. Human love may be conditional, but God's love is supernatural; it's unconditional, and it knows no limits. There's nothing you can do to earn His love, and nothing you can do to stop His love. The scripture tells us that His love is patient and kind; His love redeems and restores you. No matter what you've been told, or what you may think about yourself today, you are His most prized possession. There's nothing that can separate you from His love! Remember, faith is activated by love. As you allow Him to flood you with His love, your faith will be ignited, and you'll be empowered to live the abundant life that He has for you!"

P.S. Don't message me asking who these people are. Those who need to know, already know. If you don't know already, then you don't need to know. I don't mean to be rude, but if I revealed their names then that would be gossip.

"Fire goes out for lack of fuel, and quarrels disappear when gossip stops." -Proverbs 26:20 (NLT)

I won't have any more quarreling. It's not worth it.