I've had some thoughts like this floating around my head for a while, and just today I gave it some more thought. Sarcasm. That one thing we're all so good at, and love using so often. Also something that I feel should be addressed.
My main point: Hebrews 12:14 - "Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord." I admittedly use some heavy sarcasm with my friends in regular conversation; however, the difference I want to distinguish here is between sarcastically joking around with friends and using sarcasm in a provocatory, argumentative manner. This might seem like a pointless note to those reading it, but after reading a facebook note recently written by a friend, and watching the responding believers (people whom I respect, no less) try to destroy each other with sarcastic comments over whether or not their respective opinions were Biblical, I think it important to offer up a reminder. Sarcasm is fine when you're having fun with friends who can handle it; this is not what was happening, though. The sarcasm I am opposing is that which is meant to tear down others, to build up one's own opinion, and which causes strife among the Church. It's not about whether or not your opinion is right...seriously. You may very well be correct, but that doesn't give you the right to force people into your way of thinking by tearing them apart with logic. 1 Peter 3:8-11 - "Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. For 'Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it.'" Trying to destroy someone else's opinion in order to prove that you are correct is the opposite of having a humble mind. Using sarcasm to this end is not striving after peace or holiness. Its sole purpose is to make someone feel guilty or inferior, which is NOT what we have been called to do.
In the end, though, this is my opinion. I've been throwing around Scripture just like everyone else who wants to prove a point. If you call me a hypocrite for this, I accept the title, haha. After that, though, let's both consider how we can better submit our lives to Christ by living out Hebrews 12:14.
Peace.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Monday, September 21, 2009
Jesus. The end.
Ok, so, here's the deal. God is way bigger than us, yes? God is way more powerful than us, yes? God is way smarter than us, yes? The best laid plans for how the student leaders at Spring Arbor want the year to go are NOT necessarily the same plans that God has for the campus this year. We have our planned events and our ideas and our structures for how things are going to go, but God might have something else to say about those. We, with all these things, cannot bring people to Christ. We cannot save ANYONE. Jesus does that. The Holy Spirit does that. The Father does that. Pardon my Batman reference, but I dare say God is an Agent of holy chaos. Not craziness, but chaos according to how we think things should go.
We had chapel this morning, and it was intense. Some people didn't think very highly of it. Many did. I am not going to state my straight opinion on whether or not I thought it was "good," or on the speaker, Rick Amato. He presented the Gospel, had an altar call, and praised God a lot. There are already disagreements on his methods, though. I just want to say that when a guy I don't know very well comes to me afterward in my room, tells me about his former addictions to prescription drugs, his six-year addiction to pornography, and the fact that he hasn't even picked up his Bible in nearly a year, and THEN proceeds to tell me that this is the greatest day of his life, that he's had a spiritual renewal like he's never had before, that his burdens have been lifted, and that he wants to read his Bible now and be on fire for CHRIST...I can see that God was working on people today. And you CANNOT POSSIBLY convince me otherwise. Now comes the follow-up: What are we going to do about it?
We had chapel this morning, and it was intense. Some people didn't think very highly of it. Many did. I am not going to state my straight opinion on whether or not I thought it was "good," or on the speaker, Rick Amato. He presented the Gospel, had an altar call, and praised God a lot. There are already disagreements on his methods, though. I just want to say that when a guy I don't know very well comes to me afterward in my room, tells me about his former addictions to prescription drugs, his six-year addiction to pornography, and the fact that he hasn't even picked up his Bible in nearly a year, and THEN proceeds to tell me that this is the greatest day of his life, that he's had a spiritual renewal like he's never had before, that his burdens have been lifted, and that he wants to read his Bible now and be on fire for CHRIST...I can see that God was working on people today. And you CANNOT POSSIBLY convince me otherwise. Now comes the follow-up: What are we going to do about it?
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
I ALMOST thought about getting rid of this...and then this morning happened. ugh.
Yeah, it's been awhile since my last post. Sorry about that. I don't think I'll be blogging about my summer at camp...if there was a way for me to easily do it throughout the summer, it would be nice, but it's really hard to summarize everything easily now that it's over.
Anyways, apologies are not the point of me writing this at 6:00 AM. I've been awake all night, and I am not happy about it. I'm at Spring Arbor right now; the freshmen all moved in yesterday. I am what is known as the Spiritual Life Adviser for my dorm floor. Since I got here 2 days ago, all everyone has been talking about is how this year could be amazing: people on fire for God, preparing in prayers for humility and servant-like attitudes, and just really excited in general. This also applies to my RA, Casey Mellinger. He's shared with me some really awesome hopes he has for our floor this year, and we both are pretty pumped for it. So, naturally, Satan wants to throw a wrench in things and screw it up as much as he possibly can. I found that out tonight when I tried to go to sleep. I did not sleep; instead, I got hit with some tough warfare. I prayed, and I prayed, and I told Satan he was retarded for even THINKING he could mess with my God's plans (a few choice words came to mind that I won't share here), and I prayed some more...and after a while, it was over...not that I could sleep afterward or anything, but at least it was done. So, here I am, telling you about this. I would really appreciate prayer for the guys on my floor, the guys in my dorm, and the student leaders here especially. We need God's strength.
Anyways, apologies are not the point of me writing this at 6:00 AM. I've been awake all night, and I am not happy about it. I'm at Spring Arbor right now; the freshmen all moved in yesterday. I am what is known as the Spiritual Life Adviser for my dorm floor. Since I got here 2 days ago, all everyone has been talking about is how this year could be amazing: people on fire for God, preparing in prayers for humility and servant-like attitudes, and just really excited in general. This also applies to my RA, Casey Mellinger. He's shared with me some really awesome hopes he has for our floor this year, and we both are pretty pumped for it. So, naturally, Satan wants to throw a wrench in things and screw it up as much as he possibly can. I found that out tonight when I tried to go to sleep. I did not sleep; instead, I got hit with some tough warfare. I prayed, and I prayed, and I told Satan he was retarded for even THINKING he could mess with my God's plans (a few choice words came to mind that I won't share here), and I prayed some more...and after a while, it was over...not that I could sleep afterward or anything, but at least it was done. So, here I am, telling you about this. I would really appreciate prayer for the guys on my floor, the guys in my dorm, and the student leaders here especially. We need God's strength.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Camp(end)
Holy cow, I am wiped out...
Camp is officially over for the summer, and my third summer counseling was a doozie. I'm feelin like a lazy blogger today, so I won't talk for long. Basically, this summer was truly one of the best ones I've spent at camp...so many kids coming to Christ, God using the staff like crazy for His work, kids really learning what it means to follow Christ...not that this all doesn't usually happen at camp, but it was just really visible to me this summer. God really taught ME a lot as well. Too bad I'm feeling so lazy today, or I might actually telly you some of it. If you want to really hear some stories, we should talk. See ya.
Camp is officially over for the summer, and my third summer counseling was a doozie. I'm feelin like a lazy blogger today, so I won't talk for long. Basically, this summer was truly one of the best ones I've spent at camp...so many kids coming to Christ, God using the staff like crazy for His work, kids really learning what it means to follow Christ...not that this all doesn't usually happen at camp, but it was just really visible to me this summer. God really taught ME a lot as well. Too bad I'm feeling so lazy today, or I might actually telly you some of it. If you want to really hear some stories, we should talk. See ya.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Drive time
Wow, my down time is over. That was really fast, ha.
I've now started packing back up to head to Center Lake for the summer. Well, scratch that...I've started re-organizing what hasn't been UNpacked yet, haha. When I come home, it's usually never for very long, so I just live out of my suitcases until I leave again. I have a small stack of books I'm bringing to read...and some of them to supplement camp's firewood supply, hahahahaha.
One thing (of the MANY things) which I'm excited about for the summer is a study my good friend Mike Carpenter is taking me through. He's going to teach me all about Arminianism and Calvinism, showing me all the Scriptures which support each view, and instructing me on the pros and cons of each. I'm pretty stoked, since this is a discussion topic I've heard lots of people argue about, and one which people ask me about frequently in regards to where I stand on it, so I figured it would be wise to actually learn up on it.
Man, I can't even explain in words how excited I am for the summer...it's ridiculous. Of the several places which I regularly stay at throughout the year, camp is where I feel most at home. Everything I love comes together here: lots of music, living in the woods, lots of hangout time with friends, lots of ALONE time with no one but myself and God, kids, lots of serving, and people who LOVE. It's an amazing place. xD I don't know if I'll have any chances to update this until I'm done for the summer, so don't expect much from me until then. I'm sure I'll have plenty of stories to share afterward. =]
*Side note to anyone reading this: Camp is great and fun, but it's really tough sometimes, for many reasons (kids going insane, the rare conflict between staff, and some serious spiritual warfare), so any and all prayer you can provide for use would be MUCH appreciated!
Another less obvious reason for why I'm excited for camp this summer is because I'm one of those people who's crazy about traveling. I love going places and seeing new things, but I really don't get the chance to do that kind of stuff anymore. My family used to take summer vacations up North every year, and Spring vacations to Kentucky for several years (and yes, I've heard every possible insult for Kentucky, and I don't want to hear any of it, because if you have ever ACTUALLY been there and are in ANY way observant of your surroundings, you would know it's a beautiful state!). We don't do any of those since I've started working at camp, but not because I'm gone all summer. We just can't. This has been bothering me a bit lately; I've been really longing to go out West for a very long time now. This is one trip I've not experienced, but also one I've wanted to take since I was little. I see pictures of my friends in other countries and different places, and it makes me sad. However, I know this is just a simple earthly desire, and I should really get over it, because not only is it pretty likely not going to happen, but it's not even CLOSE to being important enough to distract me from what I need to be focusing on. Going to camp helps to get this out of my system.
There, my pity party's over, haha. I should probably get back to packing; it's getting late. I probably won't be leaving until tomorrow evening, though, maybs around five o'clock. Probably won't make it to camp until at least seven. I'll have tomorrow to pack n shtuff, but I'll probably also sleep away part of the morning, ha. Anyway, hope y'all have a great summer, and please, please pray for me if you remember! If anyone reading this has prayer requests, contact me, or leave a comment on here. I'll be checking it, just not posting. Thank you.
I've now started packing back up to head to Center Lake for the summer. Well, scratch that...I've started re-organizing what hasn't been UNpacked yet, haha. When I come home, it's usually never for very long, so I just live out of my suitcases until I leave again. I have a small stack of books I'm bringing to read...and some of them to supplement camp's firewood supply, hahahahaha.
One thing (of the MANY things) which I'm excited about for the summer is a study my good friend Mike Carpenter is taking me through. He's going to teach me all about Arminianism and Calvinism, showing me all the Scriptures which support each view, and instructing me on the pros and cons of each. I'm pretty stoked, since this is a discussion topic I've heard lots of people argue about, and one which people ask me about frequently in regards to where I stand on it, so I figured it would be wise to actually learn up on it.
Man, I can't even explain in words how excited I am for the summer...it's ridiculous. Of the several places which I regularly stay at throughout the year, camp is where I feel most at home. Everything I love comes together here: lots of music, living in the woods, lots of hangout time with friends, lots of ALONE time with no one but myself and God, kids, lots of serving, and people who LOVE. It's an amazing place. xD I don't know if I'll have any chances to update this until I'm done for the summer, so don't expect much from me until then. I'm sure I'll have plenty of stories to share afterward. =]
*Side note to anyone reading this: Camp is great and fun, but it's really tough sometimes, for many reasons (kids going insane, the rare conflict between staff, and some serious spiritual warfare), so any and all prayer you can provide for use would be MUCH appreciated!
Another less obvious reason for why I'm excited for camp this summer is because I'm one of those people who's crazy about traveling. I love going places and seeing new things, but I really don't get the chance to do that kind of stuff anymore. My family used to take summer vacations up North every year, and Spring vacations to Kentucky for several years (and yes, I've heard every possible insult for Kentucky, and I don't want to hear any of it, because if you have ever ACTUALLY been there and are in ANY way observant of your surroundings, you would know it's a beautiful state!). We don't do any of those since I've started working at camp, but not because I'm gone all summer. We just can't. This has been bothering me a bit lately; I've been really longing to go out West for a very long time now. This is one trip I've not experienced, but also one I've wanted to take since I was little. I see pictures of my friends in other countries and different places, and it makes me sad. However, I know this is just a simple earthly desire, and I should really get over it, because not only is it pretty likely not going to happen, but it's not even CLOSE to being important enough to distract me from what I need to be focusing on. Going to camp helps to get this out of my system.
There, my pity party's over, haha. I should probably get back to packing; it's getting late. I probably won't be leaving until tomorrow evening, though, maybs around five o'clock. Probably won't make it to camp until at least seven. I'll have tomorrow to pack n shtuff, but I'll probably also sleep away part of the morning, ha. Anyway, hope y'all have a great summer, and please, please pray for me if you remember! If anyone reading this has prayer requests, contact me, or leave a comment on here. I'll be checking it, just not posting. Thank you.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Down Time
Hey y'all. School's finally out for the summer...praise God. I stayed at Uncle Wookiee's house in Jackson and watched Spring Arbor's graduation ceremonies on Saturday. It was kind of sad...I felt like half of my close friends from Spring Arbor graduated this year. Afterward, I went out and had one last meal with my friend Jacob Cook and his family. Then I drove to Quincy and stayed with Ben Rupp until Sunday evening. I spent all of Monday reading Ted Dekker's Saint. The next day, I started reading The Zombie Survival Guide. GOOD times, haha. It's been pretty relaxing since I've come home...the opposite of what this semester was like at school. Not having a paper due every second feels great!
One big problem that I've been working with is my computer. I've been working on switching from Vista to XP these past two weeks, and it's been a real pain. I thought I totally busted it at one point. I think it's working fine now; although I'm still working through some issues with the wireless, and I have no audio capabilities whatsoever, haha.
Tomorrow, I think I'm going to just chill and read Scripture. This time off before camp is some of the only time I'll have off for a long time, might as well make good use of it, right?
I'll probably post at least once more before I head to camp. So yeah.
One big problem that I've been working with is my computer. I've been working on switching from Vista to XP these past two weeks, and it's been a real pain. I thought I totally busted it at one point. I think it's working fine now; although I'm still working through some issues with the wireless, and I have no audio capabilities whatsoever, haha.
Tomorrow, I think I'm going to just chill and read Scripture. This time off before camp is some of the only time I'll have off for a long time, might as well make good use of it, right?
I'll probably post at least once more before I head to camp. So yeah.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
End of the semester thoughts
It's finally drawing near: summer! It's been a really long year for me here at Spring Arbor...
As I write this, I'm sitting on the quiet floor of the library. This has been my home for this whole week: the time I've spent in here this week is more than all the time I've spent in here all year up to this point! I'm in kind of a tight spot with homework. My professors all got together and decided to assign all the biggest assignments of the year to be due this past Monday. Fun. Last week, my Biblical Interpretation class had the week off for class periods so we could work on an 8-10 page exegetical paper. Unfortunately, I had several other really large assignments that were due that week, and by the time I actually was able to come to the library to look for commentaries on the passage that I chose to write on, they were pretty much all taken by the others in my class. I couldn't even finish the preliminary research assignment for the paper until Monday...when the paper itself was due. I e-mailed my professor about this last Friday, asking for an extension because I wasn't going to be able to turn it in on Monday. He didn't really give me an extension, but he at least gave me some leniency and said the late penalty would be slight, just as long as I wrote it well. I'm working on finishing it today so I can hand it in at class tomorrow morning.
Last night I was at a worship/prayer service my good friend Steven started up this year called Rooted. Ron Kopicko, our university chaplain, came and spoke. He had one verse in particular that he shared with us...Philemon 20: "Yes, brother, I want some benefit from you in the Lord. Refresh my heart in Christ." He then asked us a question that blew me away: "When's the last time someone was refreshed in Christ just by being around you?" Holy cow. That hurt. He challenged us to live a life of service without EVER expecting anything in return from anyone. Everything that he was saying hit me really hard last night. If every person who claimed to be a Christian lived this way...oh man, what would happen!?
I am so excited to be done with this semester. I've finally finished choir, and I am NEVER going back! We had our last concert this Tuesday, and I absolutely gave it the best I could. Good times. This weekend I'm taking a break from school before finals and heading home to have a giant Risk tourney with my friend Jon...it's gonna be EPIC.
Recently, I decided I should add another semester onto my time here at the Arb. I got the job as Spiritual Life Advisor (SLA) on Ormston 3 next year, I might be working as a youth group worship leader at a local church called Westwinds, I'm working on getting a band started up, and on top of all that, I had registered for 17 credits next semester! Needless to say, I kind of wanted to thin out my class schedule a little so that I could do the other things as best as I could.
Dag, yo. I can't wait for these two weeks to be over.
Peace.
As I write this, I'm sitting on the quiet floor of the library. This has been my home for this whole week: the time I've spent in here this week is more than all the time I've spent in here all year up to this point! I'm in kind of a tight spot with homework. My professors all got together and decided to assign all the biggest assignments of the year to be due this past Monday. Fun. Last week, my Biblical Interpretation class had the week off for class periods so we could work on an 8-10 page exegetical paper. Unfortunately, I had several other really large assignments that were due that week, and by the time I actually was able to come to the library to look for commentaries on the passage that I chose to write on, they were pretty much all taken by the others in my class. I couldn't even finish the preliminary research assignment for the paper until Monday...when the paper itself was due. I e-mailed my professor about this last Friday, asking for an extension because I wasn't going to be able to turn it in on Monday. He didn't really give me an extension, but he at least gave me some leniency and said the late penalty would be slight, just as long as I wrote it well. I'm working on finishing it today so I can hand it in at class tomorrow morning.
Last night I was at a worship/prayer service my good friend Steven started up this year called Rooted. Ron Kopicko, our university chaplain, came and spoke. He had one verse in particular that he shared with us...Philemon 20: "Yes, brother, I want some benefit from you in the Lord. Refresh my heart in Christ." He then asked us a question that blew me away: "When's the last time someone was refreshed in Christ just by being around you?" Holy cow. That hurt. He challenged us to live a life of service without EVER expecting anything in return from anyone. Everything that he was saying hit me really hard last night. If every person who claimed to be a Christian lived this way...oh man, what would happen!?
I am so excited to be done with this semester. I've finally finished choir, and I am NEVER going back! We had our last concert this Tuesday, and I absolutely gave it the best I could. Good times. This weekend I'm taking a break from school before finals and heading home to have a giant Risk tourney with my friend Jon...it's gonna be EPIC.
Recently, I decided I should add another semester onto my time here at the Arb. I got the job as Spiritual Life Advisor (SLA) on Ormston 3 next year, I might be working as a youth group worship leader at a local church called Westwinds, I'm working on getting a band started up, and on top of all that, I had registered for 17 credits next semester! Needless to say, I kind of wanted to thin out my class schedule a little so that I could do the other things as best as I could.
Dag, yo. I can't wait for these two weeks to be over.
Peace.
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