Our Longings

I long for things, such as the new iPod video or a 40' sailboat.
I long for relationships, my wife and deep friendships.
I long for God.

Most of the time I get the order mixed up. Things, people, then God; or people, things, then God. Sometimes I get it right and God comes first. If I mess up the order of things, then I end up taking from people and things to fill up my life and feel good, even to feel good about God. i.e. The satisfaction people give me make me feel better about God, after all He has provided those relationships and things (my justification for seeking satisfaction outside of God's provision). But if I get it right and seek God first, and really that is just Him seeking me out, then I am able to give to others and to give away things. I wonder how I seek relationship with God. Do I relate to Him best through experiencing and seeing His creation? No, because again that only allows me to take from His creation (things and people). And really, His creation only holds me without excuse (Rom. 2) although His glory is clearly seen in the people and things He has created! I know Him best by responding in faith to the good news preached to me (Heb. 4:2) God uses His word in my life to pierce me to the soul (v. 12) and fulfill my longings.

I will continue in the things I have learned from His word and Has led me to salvation through faith in Jesus. (2 Tim. 2:14-15) and pass them on to others (2 Tim 2:2) And maybe if we end up like those believers in Acts 2 I will end up with a vPod and a sailboat - (just kidding:)

Exciting News!

Did you know that Prescott, AZ has an In and Out Burger? What is the world coming to?

Ravi Z.

I was listening to a podcast of Ravi 'Let my people think' and he makes me never want to watch T.V. I need to think and talk more, and watch less!

Fireproof

I bought a fireproof safe. I lost the keys. What is in there that is so important?

???????

I feel left out, so I must jump in.
Poker rules, disaster updates, the state of...., heartache, confusion, some interesting pictures, blogging seems to have it all. I am so totally committed that I couldn't even log on to my own blog (seems my password somehow slipped out of my mind). I swore I would never write (mostly referring to a book) because I change to often and most of the time I need to recant what I say, but I guess that's ok in the blogger universe. I just need to add the disclaimer that I am an idiout - most of my friends know this anyway.

My first order of business is to clarify some goals (in no particular order of priority):

1) Become an artist (photography shall be my medium).
2) Stick with it longer than I stuck with blogging.
3) Figure out my life.
4) Figure out life for all other people.
5) Tell people what I have figured out.
6) Adjust my attitude.
7) Adjust attitude of others.

Can I say whatever I want knowing that no one reads this crap or should I sensor my thoughts?

hello again. I am a new simpler man.

Ty

p.s. I feel this pressure that if I have a friend with a blog I must add their blog to my 'anthology' section {why did I name it that way anyhow?)

Doesn't it seem odd that a spell checker on a blog site called eBlogger has neither the word 'blog' or 'blogger' in it's dictionary?

Transition

I hate moving. Packing, loading, unloading, unpacking - a big circle filled with boxes. My theory is that you could drop every third box out of the truck during travel and you would never miss the stuff. The best part is the opportunity to unclutter. This begins with a garage sale, moves to the 'just throw it in the trash' phase, then finishes with a 'we will store it in the attic/garage' phase. It does make one feel clean to get rid of so much of the junk filling hidden corners of your house, like being able to take a deep breath from clear mountain air. Makes me thankful that we can do this with our emotional and spiritual lives as well.

We should be all moved in by the time we are ready to leave this new house!

Later

Fire, Snow, and Wind

My friend is sitting here playing his guitar (his appartment complex had a fire and they have now taken residence in our basement) and we are talking about worship. How do you plan a worship service? Why is it that style, song choice, and tempo matter? We would like to think it doesn't but I know it does for me and I don't like myself for it. Shouldn't I be able to ascribe worth to God in any setting, with any music - but I have sat in enough worship services that have bored me rather than ignite my passion. I know it is my problem, but what is the solution?

Postmodernism; The Polite Selfishness

Maybe this is just me, but here is how I feel about the days we live in;

The more things change, the more they stay the same.
Society shifts, culture evolves, and style cycles, but maybe most of all man stays the same. We are a selfish creature.
Our twist on selfishness in the postmodern age is to be very polite about it:
Selfishness:
My thoughts are important - therefore I am right
My feelings are true - therefore I must act
My voice should be heard - therefore I must speak (or blog)
My way is right - therefore I must be tolerated

Politeness:
This is all true about me, you should allow me my space to live out these truths but you have different thoughts, feelings, voice, and direction so I must allow you your space to live out your truths. So please, go ahead.

Then we end up with a mass of selfishness, hidden in politeness, that creates a society with many differing truths that all can and can't be true.

Ruff, Ruff!

Beware of the dogs...
Phil. 3:2

A Child's life

Many times in life we are scared, uncertain, in wonder, in awe, excited, mellow, and all the other spectrum of emotions. Why is it that as we grow older it becomes so easy for us to cover these feelings rather than express them as our children so easily do? Why can't we just grab our Father's hand, hold on for the ride, and experience new and wonderful things that are just a step ahead? We need to remember Jesus' call to a childlike faith which can't always be explained, rationed, or understood. We know we have a Father who looks out for us, who brings us the joy of His embrace, all in His plan to glorify Himself... and we get to be part of it all! Wow, hold on and live life with the childlike faith that is inside each of us!

Supersize It!

A man travels throughout this country only eating McDonald's which throws his system into shock, liver problems, skin problems, and weight problems. He reflects what he eats. So what do we eat? Do we thrive for the word of God or scurvy ourselves into shock with junk food? Pick up the Bible, rediscover God, find your passion for Him - are you truly in love with Him or are you culturally trained to acknowledge His existence.

"It is not what a man does that determines whether his work is sacred or secular, it is why he does it. The motive is EVERYTHING." A.W. Tozer

Micromanaging Our Way into the Future

Why is it that we (maybe just me?) react so strongly to being told what to do, when to do it, and how it should be done? When you really think about it, doesn't the very fact that someone else is making decisions for us relieve stress and responsibility for failure and allow us to just ‘go with the flow?’ Is there someone else that knows better than me? It makes me think that I am not as humble as I imagine. I find within me a desire to control, to invent, and to create. Self-determination is really what I mean. How does this affect my relationship with my creator? Is God a micro-manager? After all I think he is completely sovereign, therefore he must have control of even the smallest of details in order to accomplish his plans. The converse to this is that his sovereignty is dependent upon mans free will. Maybe I am straying a little far from the subject of why I don’t like to be micro-managed. Pride I guess. After all, my ideas and plans are usually better than any one else’s. Right? Isn’t invention and creation a good thing for us; in fact are these the very things God instills in us, a very part of the image of himself? Where is the balance? These thoughts stem from an instance I recently found myself in where I wanted to punch my supervisor (not a very godly reaction) because he was micro-managing the hell out of me. He was concerned that I had used the wrong form, actually it wasn’t really wrong just not the best form, and wanted me to redo the paper work so it was on the correct color coded form even though the accounting office knew what I needed and the details of what account to charge the items to, etc. Then he finished with flair and added ‘just let me see the forms before you turn them in.’ In my mind my arm was swinging towards his nose. Anyway, I know I don’t like to be controlled except I have always claimed to submit to God. There is some sort of tension here that I will have to reconcile at some point.

Sorry for the complete rambling nature of this post – more of a catharsis than anything else.

Success and Suffering

It seems to me in my short life that we achieve more through suffering than through success. I don't mean to say that we ought to seek out suffering, but when faced with it we should react with some sense of hope. Hope you say? When crap happens? Yes, now I don't pretend that we will enter suffering with a silly smile or fake pretension that all is well because it ends well. It may not end well - that is no fun at all. But the knowledge that suffering molds our character, transforms our lives, and creates reliance should bring about a paradigm shift in thinking so that as we suffer we become more refined and tempered. We will be somehow better for it and that change in perspective allows hope to creep in. Let us encourage each other that we live for a time in such a place as this but this is not our final destination, this is simply a stop on the way. Don't unpack, don't settle in to much, because soon enough - off we go. Live with eternity in mind. Take care of each other along the path because you never know who you may run into again in the future. The next time suffering steps through the door remember that you will be better for the meeting. Weep, rejoice, whatever, but focus on the fact that in our times of success we tend not to know who we really are and that suffering ushers us closer to God.