Here's a little something taken from Will the Thrill's blog...What a thrill I get watching an 8th grade guy grow into such a spiritual stud!
"I find that my spiritual life grows when I pray regularly, and life seems less stressful. I now pray all the time: before I ref, when I'm patrol leading, before and after my day, even in the middle of science. I pray now whenever I feel like it; when I'm stressed out, when I want to tell God how awesome He is, when I need His help, whenever, whatever. I highly recommend that everyone starts to pray regularly."
Maybe you're wondering why I haven't posted in a few days...Well, I've been busy planning my engagement.
What? Did I say engagement?
Yes, I did.
I asked Alli to marry me today and she said "yes". It was a really special time which I'll detail later...just wanted to let cyber-space know tonight how good God was to me today.
Peace out.
Be imitators of God, therefore, as beloved children
Ephesians 5:1
Have you ever wanted to imitate somebody else? Before you answer "No way, I'm my own person!", think about it...how did you decide to wear your hair the way you are wearing it? Ever quoted a movie to get a laugh? Ever bought a pair of shoes because you saw them on someone else first?
We all imitate in one way or another. Is what you imitate on a day to day basis worthy of imitation? Have you ever tried to imitate God? I have and I quickly found that it is impossible to do so perfectly...that is why I must first be certain that I am a "be-loved" child of God. Only when I give up my life of independence for dependence on God, will I be able to know Him and imitate Him.
Sometimes it is hard to believe that God would love you. It can be difficult to let down your guard and let God's love in. Maybe you've seen many imperfect and/or bad examples of love in this world. I can assure you God's love will not fail. Be loved by God...then imitate Him and love others.
People who see Christians that put on a "Perfect Show" don't understand why we need Jesus.
...a quote from my sister's blog...a "must read".
A great quote from God made through the lips of a prophet named Jeremiah several thousand years ago...
"Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches. Let him who boasts boast in this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who exercises kindness, justice, and righteousness on earth for in these I delight."
What am I doing today to "understand and know" God? If nothing, then I shall have nothing in my life worth boasting about.
Tomorrow at 7am "Kidd Kraddick in the Morning" (on 106.1fm in Dallas) will be replaying a segment with the Backstreet Boys. Listen and you might hear a familiar voice asking a question...
Right now I'm catching up on my blogging while sitting comfortably in my bed at home. Using a laptop with wireless internet is a new phenomenon for me...I can't help but feel like Meg Ryan's character in the 1998 hit romantic comedy You've Got Mail. I think that movie was the first time I saw someone use a laptop in various places throughout the house.
When I first witnessed shopgirl's laptop phenomenon and cyber-love-connection, I was a freshman at Oklahoma State (go pokes) and had to walk down 3 flights of stairs and into an exchange student dominated (and coincidentally kinda funny smelling) computer lab in order to use the internet.
My how things have changed.
BJ's Brewary is a restaurant just south of 15th street on the west side of 75 in Plano. I ate dinner there tonight for the first time and it is now one of my new favorites. I'll probably go there for my birthday next week. Click here to check out the menu. (the Pizookie is unbelievable...If you thought Chili's Molten Chocolate cake was good...)
Yo - I'm sittin' here with "Intense" Will Washington and Hannason "Hannashizzle" Lindley and we were checkin' out some other cool blogs. I added some links to new blogs down there in my sidebar. Check it out web surfers!
Don't forget to create your own blog so we can keep it real together.
Listening to a new song called "Held" off of Natalie Grant's Awaken CD. The song is about the comfort God provides in the midst of the faith-shaking confusion, pain, and bitterness of personal loss. The lyrics are great but the melody will make you cry...
Here are some lyrics:
We're asking why this happens
to us who have died to live,
it's unfair.
This is what it means to be held.
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
and you survive.
This is what it is to be loved,
and to know that the promise was
when everything fell we'd be held.
This hand is bitterness.
We want to taste it, let the hatred know our sorrows.
The wise hands opens slowly to lilies of the valley and tomorrow.
I was disturbed by myself today.
I hardly listen to the radio anymore while I'm in my car. I prefer the silence of the open road (by "silence" I mean the sound of my driver's side backseat window rattling and by "open road" I mean bottle necked traffic at the high-five) over the consistent replay of the same 6 songs over the airwaves. I typically get in my car, turn on the radio, hear a few disgusting lines of a 50cent song or the partial chorus of the only Gavin DeGraw song the world seems to care about, and then shut it off and open my sunroof. This is typical.
Today was not typical. I left the radio on for an entire song! "Why?" you ask...because that song was "Beautiful Soul" by Jesse McCartney. I am embarrased and ashamed but I can't get enough of Jesse's nasal-toned melody. I don't seem to care that he is nothing more than a poor-man's Aaron Carter and that Aaron Carter is just a poor-man's Nick Carter and that Nick Carter is, well, a poor man.
I am way too feeling the groove of "Beautiful Soul" and I am afraid that in the process my own soul has turned ugly. If you have suffered from the same and survived I would appreciate any advice...Please...Help me.
I've been reading a book called The Jesus I Never Knew by Philip Yancey and the always insightful author looks into an interesting question: What motivation did Jesus have to choose 12 men to be his "disciples"? One reason given is the book of Mark is "that they might be with him."
"Jesus never tried to hide his loneliness and dependence on other people," observes Yancey.
What I'm asking myself today...Who am I to try to hide my loneliness? Why do I always act as if I don't need to depend on other people? We all need friends...Who are you inviting to be yours?
P.S. I was just told that the previous blog sounds like I was on a baking date with Bill Lisle. Not the case. We were with a whole group of like 12 people and I am still pretty glad to be dating Alli.
Went to dinner at PeiWei tonight w/ a bunch of friends and then back to my place for desserts and Sinbad's "Afros & Bellbottoms" video. Had to buy eggs and flour and all that junk b/c I'm hopeless in the kitchen...but now I'm totally hooked up...I've even got some vanilla extract...watch out Martha Stewart.
I'm up in Oklahoma right now...Oops, I mean Allen. I'm sitting in a Kindergarten classroom with my boo Alli. I always love surprising her with lunch because I get to see her smile.
Dinner & a movie tonight if anyone wants to join us...
