The Great Debaters

Went to see "The Great Debaters" last night before the Steeler Game. Lets just say it was better than the game. It was truly a great movie, Forest Whitaker and Denzel Washington were awesome.

Mexico 2007

So just a word to the wise, don't watch this video unless you plan on going on the Mexico 2008 trip it is going to be sick!

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Boldness

One afternoon, I pulled up to my house after a long morning pouring coffee, and making lattes for "the man" at Starbucks. As I pulled into the alley way behind my house I noticed there was a brand new, shiny, Lexus slowly creeping up the alley toward me. There was something about it that seemed out of place. Using my detective skills that I obtained from watching hours of Psyche and CSI, I deduced that the driver of this car did not live in the neighborhood.

As the car approached the gentleman rolled down the window, pointed to my house, and asked me if I lived there. The elderly gentleman driving the car said that he used to live in my house in 1945, and began to reflect from his car. He told me that he was in the living room doing homework, when Pearl Harbor was bombed. I invited him in, but he declined. The gentleman said he had been sick lately, and he wasn't up to it. He drove off, but I had this funny feeling inside of me like I should have prayed for him

Here is what I am getting at, that funny feeling, that is called the Holy Spirit. Don't get me wrong I am not living in guilt or anything, I am motivated not to miss another opportunity to pray and see God move.

I read this awesome blog this morning about praying and seeing God move --> Here

Chi Alpha Testimony

Check out the testimony in this newsletter all you college students. It gives a great perspective on friends you think are unreachable. We have no idea what is going on in the lives of people around us.

Sorority Sister

The New Year, The New Blog, and The Best of 2007

So here it goes, this is going to sound crazy to some of you. My new years resolution is to blog every day in 2008! I know that some youth, and college age pastors have said that through the ages, but I really mean it. It may not be ground breaking, or profound, but it will be everyday.

The best of 2007...
AG Frat House
XA Leaders Retreat
XA Small Group Studies (You guys rock)
My Lovely Girlfriend
Reach the U in Springfield, MO
"The Master Plan for Evangelism" By Robert Coleman (Great read, you brainiacs that love to read could knock it out in an evening)
The Well Ping Pong
The first two weeks of RMU fall semester (jam packed with crazy events and fun)
Seeing the high school students grow, and leaders emerge
The Tarahumara, Mexico, and Ernie Peacock
Freshman
Loving Jesus more every day
And there was so much more...

Plastic Sofa Covers (Revised Edition)

I recently realized that humans make up some crazy rules and regulations. Have you ever gone to someone’s house, and you weren't allowed in the living room? Maybe it was your living room that you weren't allowed to set foot in. I am almost positive I am ripping off some very funny comedian when I make this statement, but isn't the point of a living room to spend time living in the darn thing. As if the floor was made of hot lava, and your feet would be consumed by fire if you step foot in it. Maybe your parents thought their 1992 lazy boy sofa would be worth something some day, that’s why they wrapped it with a plastic cover that strangely resembled saran wrap. They should have roped it off like a museum, and put up signs prohibiting flash photography.

Museums, zoos, and aquarium also have some rules I have noticed, and at times, I am ashamed to say, disobeyed. Do not touch, do not feed the animals, or my personal favorite, do not tap on glass. I think seeing signs exhibiting these statements evoke the desire to disobey them. There is just something about a large tank of fish that excites my finger, and causes me to loose control. I confess I am probably responsible for trauma to captive sea dwelling creatures all over the world.

There is something that all of these rules have in common, that is they all have a purpose or a spirit. The spirit of the law is what the law is indented to make happen, or keep from happening. Obviously people who keep their living rooms sacred would like to keep the space clean and presentable. I don't know if this is true or not, probably not, but a tap on the glass to a fish is the equivalent to an earthquake for us. Thus the spirit of this rule is don't freak out the fish.

Well a couple of hundred years before Jesus came on the scene, there were these rule makers known as the Pharisees. There were many people who wished to do away with the law of God, and they were entrusted to uphold, and protect it. They came up with a plan that they would make up a bunch of rules on top of God's law in order to protect themselves from breaking God's law. In a way they thought they would first have to break their rules before they could break God's laws. Kind of like a plastic cover on a couch. Unfortunately, they became corrupt, and began to let their laws take priority over God's laws. The Pharisees missed the spirit of God's law all together.

When Jesus came he completely blew these guys out of the water. By stating it is not enough to obey they Law, but you must obey it in your heart. Basically you must desire to keep the law for it's original purpose.

Matthew 6:21-22 (Jesus Speaking)
21"You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' 22But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother[b]will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca,' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.

Mark 7:6
6He (Jesus) replied, "Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written:
" 'These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.

Have you ever felt like you are just going through the motions? Sometimes we can create these leagalistic rules in our life to convince ourselves that we are right with God: go to church, read your bible, pray, don't swear, go to Chi Alpha. These are all things that we need to be doing, especially going to Chi Alpha (hehe). However, these things should be by products of a genuine faith within our hearts. The spirit of God is able to transform the way you think, it transformed mine, and still transforms me daily...

WWBGD

My new outlook on life is WWBGD. From here on out this will be the litmus test for my life’s decisions. What would Bear Grylls do? Who is Bear Grylls, you ask? Well I am glad you inquired.

Mr. Grylls may be the most manly man on the face of the earth. He eats live scorpions, jumps out of planes, kills rabbits with pieces of wood, heck the dude even climbed Mt. Everest. Bear is the host of the television show Man V. Wild. Host isn't even the word for it, host doesn't event do it justice, he is more like your guide.

The premise of the whole show is this, Bear is dropped off in one of the world's most gnarly dangerous places, and usually he parachutes in. He usually only carries a water bottle, knife, and a flint. He spends about a week navigating treacherous terrain displaying his survival skills, showing the audience what to eat, what not to eat, how to build fire, how to kill animals, how to turn your underwear into a shelter to sleep in, and much more.

I remember once when I was in the boy scouts, and we took this five-mile hike, and I barely made it, I really thought I was a goner. I guess that is why I never made eagle.

This guy goes to desperate measures to survive in the wilderness. It got me thinking, I would consider the world around us to be in some pretty desperate times. Are we going to desperate measures to reach out to them?