JOHN PIPER LAYS IT OUT!

S T U M B L E

I need HIS help.

Without HIM, I fall.

Lately, I've been feeling like I can do it myself. I'm a big kid now. I don't need anyone or anything. I'm in control.

But how quickly God pulls me back down and says, "NO!" The Holy Spirit is screaming in my head, yet somehow I let the desires of my flesh take over.
I know what I ought to do. But it feels so good to...not.
It's like an arm-wrestling competition. I'm fighting...I'm fighting...my arm starts shaking as the pressure builds...my opponent is strong...i'm quivering..muscle spasms...my hand hits the table..flat.
Muscle gave up.
I lost.
Guilt is taking over.

"We are no longer slaves to sin. We are no longer bound to it. Jesus Christ broke those chains with his blood.
We have entered into a saving RELATIONSHIP with Jesus Christ,
but we still have affairs with sin." — Tim Chaddick
Reality: Los Angeles

I don't want to have affairs anymore.

Dandelion.

The other day, my professor said that when we return to God, he blows our sins away like a dandelion.

I like that.

My New Favorite Quote

"Never allow somebody to be a priority, when they're only making you an option."

A Change of Season

"For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:

a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant and a time to pluck up what is planted;
a time to kill and a time to heal;
a time to break down and a time to build up;
a time to weep and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn and a time to dance."

Ecclesiastes 3:1-4

A new chapter is beginning to unfold. After 5 years of turbulence, it's all coming to a close soon enough. Praise God for his mercy. Praise God for rescuing us.

Remember the Cross

In one of my Bible classes recently, the professor was talking about Mel Gibson's movie, The Passion of the Christ." He brought up the point how the movie focused on Jesus' flogging so much — the blood, and flesh, and lashes, and suffering, and screaming— and then it kind of looked at the cross almost as if it were an after thought. But the Bible doesn't really go into much detail about Jesus' flogging. The main focus in the Bible is the cross and Jesus separating himself from God to take on the sins of the world. Wait a minute. Can we just stop and think about that for a second?

Jesus Christ, a simple man, like you and me
took on
EVERY
sin of the world. Past, present, and future.

You know what I have to say, flog him all you want. It is absolutely nothing compared to the cross and taking on the sins of the world. Jesus separated himself from God and said: "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?" Translation: "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Matthew 27:46).

And he did it because he loves us. That's the only reason.
We are his beloved.

BEAUTY

STAND UP AND PRAISE THE LORD FOR SENDING HIS BEAUTIFULLY PERFECT SON TO WASH AWAY ALL MY SINS!!!

1 PETER 3:3-4 — "do not let your adorning be external- the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear- but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious."

FIND YOUR BEAUTY AND CONFIDENCE IN KNOWING THAT YOU ARE A BELOVED CHILD OF GOD!!!!

Thankyou Tupac

You can spend minutes, hours, days, weeks,
even months over-analyzing a situation;
trying to put the pieces together, justifying what
could've, should've, would've, happened...
Or you can just leave the pieces on the floor and move the fuck on.

*Excuse the language please, and thank you.

"Woo" Who?

Why are people so complicated? Oh, such a vast question; too many answers, too broad a subject, too vague…but, really. Why is it so hard for people to just say what they feel? What are they afraid of? Why do we play games with each other? Especially when it comes to feelings of intimacy, emotional attachment, taking a liking to someone, or whatever you want to call it.

Are relationships really so difficult that people need to say one thing and then act completely opposite from their words? Why do they say things in the first place?

Men. All the males in the world, can you please tell me why you play so many games with women? What is it about you fellas that make you want to do everything in your power to get the girl, and then once you’ve got her, you don’t want her. But it’s not just the fact that you don’t want her, I get it, you’re over her, you leave her alone, but it’s the few out there who keep her still on the edge of her seat, with some smidgen of hope that he’ll come around. What is that all about? Can’t you just let her go with one quick blow of rejection to her self-esteem? Oh no, no, no. The whole business of “courting” is just one big boat with a bunch of slimy fishermen on it. Once you’ve got your catch, you can’t just throw it back in the ocean. That’s no fun. Of course, you have to play with it first. Maybe slap it around, torture it a little, then, when it’s all beat up and bloodied with broken fins, then you can throw it back in the ocean. Wouldn’t want to kill it completely now, would you? The least you can do is spare its life. After all, fishing is just a sport.


Well, I’ve got news for you. I’m not a fish. And neither is she.

!nsomn!a.

"A ruffled mind makes a restless pillow." — Charlotte Brontë.

To Live

My prayer:

- That God would help me to see true beauty. True beauty that is seen in character, honesty, passion, love, and forgiveness.
- That I would enjoy each day that the Lord has blessed me with and not waste my life away in anxious nervousness.
- That I would trust fully in God and allow him to guide my life.
- To live freely in him, observing his wonderous creation and loving him wholeheartedly.

"Life cannot be understood flat on a page. It has to be lived; a person has to get out of his head, has to fall in love, has to memorize poems, has to jump off bridges into rivers, has to stand in an empty desert and whisper sonnets under his breadth."
-Donald Miller

TAKE ACTION!

Have you heard of the Lord’s Resistance Army, a rebel group wreaking havoc on northern Uganda? How about Joseph Kony? Better yet, have you heard that Joseph Kony is the leader of the Lord’s Resistance Army, commonly referred to as the LRA, and that he is in charge of heading up a massive troop of abducted, child soldiers? It’s not surprising if you haven’t heard of these terms. The U.S. barely ever reports on what is going on with the LRA because honestly, why should they? Reporting on the topic would mean they would have to take some kind of responsibility or action against it, and Uganda doesn’t have any oil or anything of value to the United States, so why would they need to put any effort towards the situation? They would virtually be gaining nothing. Unfortunately, the issue is still present, despite efforts by the U.S. to sweep it under the rug. The debacle is now left to passionate college students and young people to urge our government to use their power and influence to stop the horrific crimes being inflicted upon the innocent people of Uganda, Congo, and southern Sudan.

Tonight, a friend of mine introduced me to the new Invisible Children video called “The Rescue of Joseph Kony’s Child Soldiers.” Although many people have seen the “Invisible Children: Rough Cut” film that was introduced in 2003, this second video explains Kony’s horrific war crimes and his unwillingness to end the violence and make peace with the United Nations. According to Invisible Children, it is estimated that the LRA is made up by more than 90% of abducted children. These boys and girls, some as young as five years old, have been kidnapped from their homes and forced to kill innocent people, burn entire households and villages, mutilate and torture other children, and are even used as sex slaves for LRA commanders.

Commentator Leroy Sievers of NPR explained the issue in a simple yet truthful way by saying that “ending the war in Uganda may not be strategically important, but it is morally imperative.” Yes, by fighting for these children we gain nothing — no rich land, no extra resources, and no fancy power; but in doing nothing, we lose everything. We lose our reputation as a country that is powerful in every situation and an advocate towards keeping the peace and fair treatment of all humanity.

The question now lies on you. What will you do to help put an end to the 23-year war that has been taking place in Uganda? It all starts with baby steps. By visiting the Invisible Children website, you can buy t-shirts, films, bracelets, and other merchandise to help spread awareness in your local community and help the organization in their efforts of rescuing the children. Invisible Children takes 50% of their proceeds and puts it towards creating more merchandise used to educate people, and the other 50% goes towards providing food and resources for displaced families of the war. On April 25th, 2009, join me, and thousands of others across the country, as we abduct ourselves in order to help free the abducted. To learn more, visit www.invisiblechildren.com.

6 Weeks

As my Christmas break is beginning to come to a close, I can't help but feel extremely anxious and unreasonably bored. It is officially Tuesday and I am heading back to school in 4 days, but it seems like the time for me to start heading back just can't come fast enough.
I have read all four books in the Twilight series, Blue Like Jazz, The Secret Life of Bees, and various magazines, pamphlets, and road signs.
I have watched a countless amount of movies. A number probably close to around 100.
I have painted, although nothing I paint can truly be considered as "art." It is just swiggles on canvas, a complete waste of resources.
I have written poetry.
I have acquired practically a new wardrobe.
I have enjoyed the rays of sunshine.
I have gone sledding and ate my way through Big Bear.
I have barely watched any TV, which I am actually quite proud of. The only TV I did watch consisted of cooking shows on the Food Network.
I have read my Bible.
I have collaged.
I have spent amazing time with the people I love, which is really all that matters of course.

But (yes, I do have a complaint), I am so sick and tired of doing nothing. I am itching to get back to the fast pace of college life — the deadlines, the meetings, the events, the chapels, the overwhelming amount of people and things all appealing to every sense at once.
I miss the smell of coffee all times, all kinds, all ways.
I miss Family Dinners.
I miss shnapples, shnoranges, and shnartichokes. And shnonquering the shnave.
I miss being in a stinky dorm with furniture that God only knows how many people have sat in, slept on, drooled on, sweated on, spilled food on, farted on, and done any other gross human function on.
I miss pillow talk.
I miss Compton/Lynwood.
I miss my friends, the people who in only a short 4 months, I have come to respect and love.

When Christmas break started, I couldn't wait to get off that campus. I was ready for some real home-cookin and my own room. It's funny to think that now all I want to do is go back. Ain't life grand?