HAPPY NEW YEAR!

HAPPY NEW YEAR! if you are in the area. stop by our loud humble party!

Warning!

The great Tsunami that hit Asia must have been an awesome sight! Logesh Monoharan my sposored child lives right outside of Coimbatore which is really far south in India. I have heard that they got hit pretty hard with the deaths. The death toll has reached 50,000 today and is expected to keep rising by the tens of thousands. If Logesh is still alive it is only by the mercy of God!
Something that I have noticed over the past few years is this: that people in general refuse to believe that anything is a sign of the 'end of the world'. They refuse to believe that the prophecies in the book of Revelation may actualy be coming to fruition in our lifetime. The Bible speaks of "wars and rumors of wars" "violence will increase" and "natural disasters will increase". With the Tsunami taking the lives of so many people with little warning and tens of thousands of men and women getting slaughtered daily in what we justify as a war, what's next? So many Christians want things to change as far as fighting, wars etc. But they still think that we should go to war! It seems that they will justify war with what the warriors did in the Old Testament and how they prayed for victory over thousands of soliders.. AND got their answer to prayer! Jesus Christ was born and changed all that! He gave us a simple list of "COMMANDMENTS" not suggestions.. commandments.. and they are written very very simple so that even the most un-educated could understand them.. and they do.. It is the elite well educated, with their own agendas that twist it to allow them to do the things Jesus said "NO" to. For instance.... very simple.. "Do Not Kill" ... how much more simple could he have said it? When Jesus gave that command he didn't give any loopholes and their is none now. If you kill for any reason... you blatently disobey the Word of God! But people will ask,, What if it is in self defense.. we have a right to protect ourselves.. right? we have the right to decide our own fate too.. Jesus also said the following.. "Love your neighbor" "pray for those who persecute you" "If anyone 'takes' your hat,, give your coat also" "If someone strikes on one cheek,, turn the other.." So after hearing what Jesus had to say to us.. where do we find the right to kill someone else? There is none.. God's Word says "do not kill" anyone who does will face judgement.. simple as that!!
It seems so easy to be a Christian if we are able to only follow the parts of the Bible that we want to and to just make the other part say what we want it to say.. or to do our best to find a loophole in the Word so that we can do our own thing and still feel like we are in the center of God's will. But the horrible fact is that we are only fooling ourselves and that we will be sorry on the day of judgment where the God who made the universe will judge our lives on earth against the Holy Word that He wrote himself!
People seem to try to push to the back of their minds.. the things that are happening in the world so they do not have to face the fact that the end is coming and it is probably closer than any of us think it is! The thing is, we go on with our daily lives and because are getting steadily worse but at a relatively slow pace.. it is constantly normal to us to have these things happen all around us.

My sib got engaged over Christmas.. but I didnt win the bet

Last Christmas I bet about an engagement.. one of my sibs got engaged over Christmas.. but I didnt win the bet

Merry Christmas

I just got done reading some blogs that I read regularly. I chuckled at one and out right laughed at another.. was it yours? you'll never know! Anyway.. I wrote this time for one reason to say:

MERRY CHRISTMAS !!

And speaking of which, some people would get offended by me mentioning the Christian holiday and not the Jewish or African holiday.. My opinion on that.. Get offended and get over it. Anymore it seems that people think they have a constituional right not to be offended and if they are offended by something they have the right to sue! FOR WHAT? You now get money if someone offends you? Insane! I heard a black man on the radio tonight talking about how the white man had done his people wrong for hundreds of years in slavery and made no restitution for it. He said that the white man has been doing it ever since the beginning; taking what they want from who they want. And he now wants restitution for what our ancestors did to his ancestors.. I think at this point it's time for him to get over it. That is in the past.. blacks are not a minority where I live. It is a fact that in Philadelphia, whites are the minority. But who cares who the minority is.. we all bleed red blood, the same color that Christ bled for us. And for that matter we are all brothers! People think that because they are a certain race or color they have more rights that other people. I heard in church tonight that 'what Jesus told us to do is so simple, it is amazing how many people refuse to do it' Love thy neighbor, but no, even Christians argue with neighbors and sue when their neighbor causes property damage or hurts them. Pray for those who hate you, turn the other cheek, if they take your coat give them your other garment too.. last time I heard the thing to do when we are robbed or our car is stolen is to call the police file a report and use our self efforts to get our property back and totally forget about the Lord's commands!! I guess the Bible has become just a book in our bookcase to all too many 'so called' Christians. What about our body? In the life of Christ on earth.. how many times did he seek the assistance of a doctor to 'help' him with his miracles of divine healing.. I counted them all up and go ''' NoNe! "" But today almost every person I know that calls themself a Christian, if they feared for their life because of a sickness they would seek the help of a doctor or medicine.. and then still have the nerve to ask God to heal them! Isn't that little mixed up? It's not both, it's either or! But one thing.::: If God CAN heal,, why medicine and docs too? The simple deciding factor of whether a person really has faith in God is when they get sick do they put their faith for healing in God alone or in medicine too? Speaking of offending, if this blog offends you,, refer to what I had to say about the black man wanting our generation to make restitution for his great grandparents slavery. "get over it". In America we don't have a right of not being offended. Or you could always sue me! But no need for that.. Just ask and I will follow Jesus command on that.. "give to those who ask" so no need to sue if you are offended.. just ask


Oh and since I probably got off the subject there:::

MERRY CHRISTMAS !!

I dont like titles

I get these times when my mind is so full of ideas about something that I feel like ... idk what i feel like. but i do. anyway, Friday @ work I had an idea, shared it with Phil, he loved it, shared it with my sisters, they loved it, shared it with my cousin, she loved it, shared it with my uncle, he loved it , shared it with my pastor, he loved it, and I kinda like it myself. Am I gonna share it with you? No, well actually yeah. I posted it on the forum which is linked from Vision Fellowship. We decorated our tree tonight. It was fun, even though they took pics and I was in my pajamas. the horrors. I've decided that I am not throwing any big NYE bash this year, there was no enthusiasm from anyone and no one else stepped up to offer assistance and a whole lot of other factors.. but i'd love to be invited to yours this year. I may not come, but the invite would sure be nice!

Christmas

A man went to his pastor and told him he couldn't get into the Christmas spirit. He said, "I've tried all the things you suggested, lights, a tree, buying gifts, caroling, everything.. i just can't get into the Christmas spirit. The pastor said,"of course you cannot, it's not about that at all, all those are just distractions". I heard that and thought how much I along with everyone else misses the meaning of Christmas for most of the season. Caught up in buying a tree, decorating, shopping, parties, food, friends, gift exchanges, what I want, what I give, and most of the time forgetting what the season is all about. That sounds sounds familiar doesnt it. Like we hear it in church every year? Yeh I think it does, but none the less, true.

Delete Delete Delete

I just went through my bookmarked blogs and deleted a few that havent posted in months! I may not post faithfully but I read yours faithfully!!

Disagreement

I found this on a link. It is thought provoking and created some good dialogue for my bro and I.

What if I strongly disagree with someone who professes to be a Christian?
Disagreement is a fact of life. There is no family, and certainly no church family, free of disagreements. The question should be, "How can I strongly disagree in Christian charity?" It is how we handle disagreements, which makes all the difference. As in a healthy family relationship, so long as we respect the person(s) with whom we disagree, so long as we accord them the privilege of holding their own views, we may disagree productively. We all know that disagreements can be destructive, especially if people who disagree aren't honest with one another and show little or no respect for the other person(s). When honesty and charity abound, people find that disagreement can deepen dialogue, create new understandings, and promote growth.
St. Paul in a number of his letters (epistles) compares the church to a human body with many different parts cooperating in the same work. Uniformity and complete agreement are neither part of Paul's analogy nor even ideal for the welfare of the body. We need people with different understandings so that together, working together in love and respect, we can grow in faith, respond to new opportunities, and come to new understandings. Yes, Christians are expected to come to new understandings.
Ours is a living faith. While we cherish many traditions and need to build on the understandings of the past, in every age the Christian Gospel has to be reinterpreted in light of what is going on in our world and in our lives. We face challenges unknown to our ancestors, and we are called to bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to bear on the problems and opportunities of our world. No one individual at any given time knows the mind of Christ. Together as a community, we are led by the Holy Spirit toward knowing the mind of Christ. Disagreements, even strong ones, are a necessary and often productive aspect of living into the challenges of Christian community with the intent of discovering the mind of Christ for our own day.
The famous 13th Chapter of I Corinthians is one way in which St. Paul attempted to explain how Christians could productively pool their differences and work through their disagreements. In a word, we do this in love. The love he envisioned is not "warm, fuzzy feelings" about those with whom we share church life but genuine respect, forbearance, kindness, and a willingness to listen to others, forgive them, and work with them no matter how much we disagree. Sometimes in Christian community we need to even agree to disagree about some things so that the mission of the church can move forward. In other words, our unity needs to be built on something more basic and lasting than agreement; it needs to be built on love and respect for every other child of God.--
The Right Rev. Robert W. Ihloff
Bishop of Maryland

Paintball

Been really thinking about gettin back into paintball. It was a great adrenaline rush. The only thing is.. like anyone who knows me knows.. When I get into something.. i dont just get what I can get by with.. I go all out.. get it good and get it all. So im considering.. will prob wait till spring. But I can handle that wait.

?? :(

7 years
4 months
16 days
53 minutes

Same feelings

Now, what was my complaint?

In 1636 during the Thirty Years War--one of the worst wars in the history of mankind in terms of the sheer number of deaths, epidemics, the economic results--there was a godly pastor whose name was Martin Rinkert. In a single year, this pastor buried 5,000 people in his parish--about fifteen a day. He lived with the worst that life could do.
But if you look in your hymnal, you'll find that in the middle of that time, he wrote a table grace for his children, our thanksgiving hymn:

"Now thank we all our God
With hearts and hands and voices,
Who wondrous things has done,
In whom his world rejoices."

If I'd spent the year holding 5,000 funerals of the people I served, could I write for my children a song of thanksgiving? It's an unusual thing that in history many who have the least to thank God about thank him the most.

Inventory

Oh right, it's been a long time since I blogged. And judging by the other times when I lacked bloggability, there is a reason. It's now time for me to take spiritual inventory of what my life consists of and what to keep and what to discard of. At this point, life is good and life is bad. It just depends on what part I think about. I've been thinking of playing paintball again, that has to be the biggest adrenaline rush i've ever had. I've been told that snow boarding is better, but I don't snow board. My apologies to anyone i've ever insulted or hurt, I now know what it's like. And from the experience, i've found out that I had never really been insulted or hurt that I could remember. But anywho, my apologies! Power is a good thing and a bad thing. Thinking of New Year's Eve, not sure if I will coordinate anything this year or not, not so much of not wanting to. It's just the biggest hassel is finding a venue/hall/warehouse to have it at! There is nothing around this area.

PC///t

FS

Yes Katie, there is someone else in your generation who likes Sinatra. I love his songs. If you are looking for a Sinatra lover and im not availble.. Mr. Nissley Heilman is always a good choice.

you know that feeling?

You know that feeling after your first shower in 3 days of work.?

Things I've Learned

1. God is real
2. I am stubborn
3. I piss people off
4. Sinatra is dead
5. I am emotional
6. It is possible to be overwhelmed with laughing and pass-out
7. People praying for you, is good
8. There is no control w/o God
9. If God is not in control of your life, it is out of control
10. A lady doesn't leave her escort, it isn't fair, it isn't nice
11. Friends are a priceless treasure that is usuall overlooked at treasure
12. The Supertones sound like an oldies band
13. Mark P. is getting married on Saturday
14. And his fam is snubbing him
15. My boss can immitate a train whistle
16. When I have kids, i'll love them
17. Jimmy Wayne sings a sad song (I love you this much)
18. The video is even sadder
19. Even if you hate country you should listen to/watch it
20. I like every style of music except opera and a few others
21. I'm listening to Sinatra
22. Most people do not understand me
23. Music is the best invention
24. Besides things that are better for the occasion
25. I like killing things
26. I have interest in going to the police academy
27. I'm getting fat
28. Sorta
29. I'm going to be in the parade on July 4
30. I was nominated for Vice president of LCTW (elections in Dec.)
31. I do not keep interest in reading books
32. Some people dont get it
33. Word of the day "Culture"
34. Crossmovement's new album got the same exposure @ the store as Nelly's album did
35. Jon (@work) is absolutely the most annoying person in the world
36. seriously!
37. Phil & Tool's band rocks
38. Jessica tears it on drums
39. The summer wind came blowing in from across the sea
It lingered there to touch your hair and walk with me
all summer long we sang a song
and then we stolled that golden sand
two sweet hearts and the summer wind
like painted kites those days and nights
they went flying by
the world was new beneath a blue umbrella sky
then softer than a piper man one day it called to you
I lost you, I lost you to the summer wind
the autumn wind and the winter winds
they have come and gone
and still the days those lonely days
they go on and on
and guess sighs his lullabyes
to nights that never end
my fickeled friend
the summer wind
the summer wind
warm summer wind

Is a good song...

40. The end

Repubs won

Well Republicans won, Democrats didn't win. I like what John Kerry had to say about no one is a loser because no matter the outcome, we all wake up the next day, AMERICANS! I also thot it funny that all the Democrats celebrated before the election about the victory they were gonna win.. but the others waited till they won and then celebreated. Also, I think that third partys are a joke! they are stupid and that we should only have 2 parties in our country.. If you want to make a difference, join one of the two partys, and actaully have a chance of being elected. Not some lame party that gets less than one percent of the vote just to make a point that isnt even heard! Unless of course you are just stupid. the same goes for anyone who voted third or fourth party.... insane... If you want to protest, just don't vote.. but "Oh no, you can't do that it's our american privilege to vote, I think its just as much a waste to vote third party as it is not to vote!

Peace.

We now pay for pizza boxes?

I bought a pizza tonight. the sign said $3.99 the total was $4.80. When my brother inquired about the $.81, they said, "Oh, that is $.50 for the box". Hahah.. I told him to dump the pizza in the back seat and ask for our fifty cents back!! We now get charged for the box!

Democrats taking the lowfile

If I was to vote this election, I would vote Replublican. Because it is my right to vote for whoever I want to. But I would like the bloggers, who constantly trash conservatives and constantly uphold the Liberals even when they have to overlook massive cons and search for a little pro here or there, to back up there blogs after Nov. 2.

I don't think Demos will win, I think Repubs will win. I pray for that daily. But in the event that Kerry does win, I will pray harder every day.

Also, for all the Christians who vote Liberal this November, and if you win this election. I would like you to keep a tab of how many things the Democrats do that are against the general church of Christ.

But for some reason , everyone is right, right? haha

Help! I've fallen (off the face of the earth) and can't get up.

Or so I feel that way. It's weird how things evolve into things and eventually I begin to think that life sucks. But then I cannot say that because the weirdest thing about it is I look fwd to and actually enjoy things that I normally do out of routine or just that thats what I do. Such as going to work. I actually look fwd to going to work, I now have fun and enjoy my time there.. I dont look fwd to being home.. nothing ot do with my fam. just alot of ppl in general.. Idk.. its like you are friends with ppl and then you stop initiating and they stop knowing who you are.. not really anhyone in partic just as a whole.. Its not that I mind the fact that ppl dont remember me.. but im sure in some selfish way I do.. Its just that when we did have frequent communications of some sort.. was it really all me who did the "keeping it going"? idk.. but lately my life has been evolving into another chapter.. but I fear that it may not be a good chapter.. although I feel like what I do and how I go is what I want.. but at the same time i think that I dont really want to.. idk its messed up in a messed up kinda way..

Shrugs

Shrugs--from me.




Consider yourself up to date

Daily dose of partisan humor

Subject: FW: Fwd: To be Republican
The Bergen Statesman September 11,2004

Things you have to believe to be a Republican today:

Saddam was a good guy when Reagan armed him, a bad guy when Bush's daddy made war on him, a good guy when Cheney did business with him and a bad guy when Bush needed a "we can't find Bin Laden" diversion.

Trade with Cuba is wrong because the country is communist, but trade with communist China and Vietnam is vital to a spirit of international harmony.

A woman can't be trusted with decisions about her own body, but multi-national corporations can make decisions affecting all humankind without regulation.

Jesus loves you, and shares your hatred of homosexuals and Hillary Clinton.

The best way to improve military morale is to praise the troops in speeches while slashing veterans' benefits and combat pay.

If condoms are kept out of schools, adolescents won't have sex.

Providing health care to all Iraqis is sound policy. Providing health care to all Americans is socialism. HMOs and insurance companies have the best interests of the public at heart.

Global warming and tobacco's link to cancer are junk science, but creationism should be taught in schools.

A president lying about an extramarital affair is an impeachable offense. A president lying to enlist support for a war in which thousands die is solid defense policy.

The public has a right to know about Hillary's cattle trades, but George Bush's cocaine conviction is none of our business. Being a drug addict is a moral failing and a crime, unless you're a conservative radio host. Then it's an illness, and you need our prayers for your recovery.

You support states' rights, which means Attorney General John Ashcroft can tell states what local voter initiatives they have the right to adopt.

What Bill Clinton did in the 1960s is of vital national interest, but what Bush did in the '70s & '80s is irrelevant.

Try to figure out why stem cell research is taboo, but creationism makes a lot of sense.

Feel free to pass this on. If you don't send it to at least 10 other people, we're likely to be stuck with Bush for 4 more years.

Friends don't let friends vote Republican


I did find this piece humorous. I found it via Shauna's blog. She was passing it on tho im not sure if she found it humorous or was serious.

Some of the points made that I instead of commenting on her blog, i just laughed to myself were the following ones:

"A woman can't be trusted with decisions about her own body,....."

"Jesus loves you, and shares your hatred of homosexuals......"

"Global warming and tobacco's link to cancer are junk science, but creationism should be taught in schools."

"A president lying about an extramarital affair is an impeachable offense. A president lying to enlist support for a war in which thousands die is solid defense policy."

"
Try to figure out why stem cell research is taboo, but creationism makes a lot of sense."


those were the ones that I just laughed to myself at, instead of commenting.

Oh and the last comment was funny too because no one has tried to stop me from voting Republican.. man it must be true.. i must have to friends.. haha

What am I?

Which Extremity of the World Are You?
From the towering colossi at Rum and Monkey.

Relationships-who cares

You ever have one of those kinds of relationships or friends who, if you did not take the initiative, you'd never talk? Well, i mean, some may just not be interested in talking to the other person, thats cool. But I mean the ones who are just too darned busy to take time out of their busy schedule to not call you, but just drop a simple email from a computer that they spend approx. 4 hr/day on anyway. Anyway, Shabana called me tonight and brightened my dim life. I also got a chance to wish her happy birthday! So happy Birthday Shabana!

Vball tonight was good but some of it sucked. I think some of the players were also playing 'see who can be the funniest' while playing vball. Each time someone threw the ball to the server he had to either bomb it at him or throw it at the wall above him or make him miss or whatever. It was frustrating to want to play semi serious games and then have them just fool around. Not only that but new comers want to make their own versions of the rules of the game. Whatever, right?

sigh

what else?

I got a letter from Logesh Manoharan who is in India. He is my boy through Compassion International. His letter said:

Dear Sponsor MR. JEFFREY MYERS:

LOGESH MANOHARAN writing this letter. I am fine. Hope you are also fine there. I am studying IIIrd standard. I like studying all the subject. I score 100 marks in all the subject. I like playing Cricket. During the evening I go the park to play in the swing. My Father name is T.N.Manoharan. He is daily wager. My Mother name is Chellammal. She is working in Textile company. I have one elder brother. His name is Anand. I have one elder sister, Her name is Tharani. Thanks for your letter. Write about you pray for me. My parents express their thanks to you. I am praying for you.

Your Loving sponsored son,

LOGESH MANOHARAN


It is humbling to have a child on the other side of the world in the conditions that he lives in telling me that he will pray for me. His father make 21$/month when he works!


How does one really determine where God's wants them and what His will really is for them? Is it just doing what we really want to do and then convince our selves it's God's will? Still searching on that one.

Ellen

Ellen called ------------ very depressed. She said she had nearly attempted suicide two months ago. As she talked, Ellen made it clear that she was willing to try again. She kept saying that there was no hope. She stated that she had prayed that God would change her many times, but her fears only got worse. Though she has a steady job, all interaction with people scared her. About a month ago, a friend offered to drive her to a therapist, but on the way, Ellen said she couldn’t go through with it and made her friend bring her back home. Despite a lengthy conversation with --------------------, Ellen resisted suggestions that there were alternatives and would not agree to a "Contract for Life." --------- determined that an intervention was necessary. Local officials were contacted. After they assessed Ellen, she was admitted to a hospital for treatment.

Pathetic

I have just read something and all I can say is, "pathetic, you are truly pathetic, and at the same time content in your little world of supporters". So all in all i guess thats ok, right. if someone is content no matter how pathetic one may think they are.. as long as they are content that's all that matters .... to them anyway.

The funny thing is

There is one thing that is true no matter what else happens in the world, life goes on. I have to convince myself now that I can either hang on something that happened and in effect live for the past, or look fwd to what is yet to come and deal with the present. Now if only i member that

John 12:26

Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.

If only

I look beyond the empty cross forgetting what my life has cost and wipe away the crimson stains and dull the nails that still remain More and more I need you now, I owe you more each passing hour the battle between grace and pride I gave up not so long ago So steal my heart and take the pain and wash the feet and cleanse my pride take the selfish, take the weak, and all the things I cannot hide take the beauty, take my tears the sin-soaked heart and make it yours take my world all apart take it now, take it now and serve the ones that I despise speak the words I can't deny watch the world I used to love fall to dust and thrown away

Quote

Came across this and it made me think.

"Most people only make one mistake in life - They fail to give there life to the Lord - Everything else, is the result of there first mistake."

My life?

You ever have someone try to run your life when you didn't want them to? It works for me and I am now telling you. Say to them, "Get a life dude, go away!".

Oh, there's other people?

One of the best thing about haveing 164 first cousins... Oh there are other people in the world?

Alcohol and Christians

Alcohol and Christians-Do they mix, should they mix? I've been told that they do mix and they should mix. But I think that they do not mix and they should not mix. Alot of people use scripture to see how much it allows them to do. They use it to draw the line for them and then see how close to the line they can get. But what the heck, right, if we go over the line that scripture allows, then grace kicks in and we're cool anyway. That's not how it works! It seems that some people think that the Christian life is like the perfect machine with all the right saftey features. "I'm allowed to do this to this extent but no more. But in the event that I go past the line allowed by God, , the saftey feature of grace will kick in and i'm safe anyway". That seems to be the mind-set. But it's not true. All the scriptures that say that Jesus drank wine and all that are null in this day and age. And especially null after reading 1 Thessalonians 5:22 "Avoid even the appearance of evil". To put it in context, think of it like this- You walk into a party and see everyone holding a can of Miller or a bottle of Mikes Lemonade, do we think Christian? Most would say not. My point is that Jesus said that we will be recognized as Christians by how we behave/act or something to that effect. I think that we would be stating that Christians can't have fun without be intoxicated. And to disagree would be crazy because if it were no so, then why alcohol, why not soda. The answer must be because alcohol has an affect on the body that soda cannot have. Therefore intoxicating. Sure, maybe not serious intoxication but an effect none the less. The reason why I even brought up the subject is because this past week instead of going to church, a bunch of kids were supplied with alcohol by a 26 year old dim-wit and most of them helped themselves to it. Now the reason for the subject is if it were ok for Christians to drink. Then why should I be concerned for the kids? Just for the reason that they are not 21? I don't think that is the problem here. (actually the whole prob was peer pressure) but that's beside the point. If alcohol is ok for Christians, then why not drugs too?? They have the same effect to some extent.

I prayed a collective prayer for anyone who uses the Bible to support their 'social drinking'. I think it is more of a 'giving into the peer pressure' of their unsaved or backsliding friends. I don't think there is anyone who would disagree that alcohol is the biggest destroyer of familys, of lives, etc. It's just wrong!

Home on the Range

That's where dinner was tonight. We had hot roastbeef and chicken. then we turned the range off. :)

Back from vaca. It was a pretty good vaca. Good volleyball and good fishing. Oh yeh, and good nappin. I got my share of afternoon naps in too.

But after a long vaca. I'm still not back to my normal self. I'm not sure what's wrong with me, maybe just my time of the month.... oh wait, that is the girl's excuse.

Vaca

I'll be in OCNJ for a week , so no postin unless I audio post or find internet access. Chow

Lips

Who's lips are on my desktop?

Still....

But still, life goes on....

The Passion

The Passion of the Christ came out on DVD today. I haven't seen it yet. For some reason I didn't go get it yet, but I will sooner of later.

Volleyball

Volleyball rocked tonight! It was better than last week. Only half the ppl showed up but hte other half were in OC soakin up the rays. *jealous* . But i'm waiting patiently, i'll take the next week off. Can't promise I'll be on the beach.. but ill be in OC anyway.

.......

It's comforting to read, but the devil is smart.

Air Pics

I just came across all these pics. They are shot from the air on my way to Nashville last year. The water you see in some is Lake Michigan. (I think) It'e right before we landed @ O'Hare.

Air Pic

Air Pics

Air Pics

Air Pics

Air Pics

Air Pics

Air Pics

110 Questions

For the sake of my boredom, I stole this from someone elses blog.

QUESTIONS...

1. Do you have a boyfriend or girlfriend: No

2. Do you have a crush: No

3. Do you love anyone right now: Yes

4. Have you ever been in love: Yes

5. How many people have you kissed: a few

6. Who was your first kiss: my first gf

7. How many hearts have you broken: Alot?

8. How many people broke your heart: idk

9. So what is your bf/gf/crush like: I just said i dont have either

10. Do you go by looks or personality: Both, in that order

11. Ever kiss a friend: Yes

12. Are you still friends: Yes

13. Do you smoke: Nope

14. Do you smoke weed: Nope

15. Ever trip on acid: Uh...no

16. X?: No thanks

17. Crack, heroin, anything else: No

18. Beer good or beer bad: Bad

19. Are you the sissy who drinks wine coolers: Nope

20. Prefer beer or liquor: Liquor.. when I drank

21. What kind of cigarettes do you smoke: I dont

22. Are you a virgin: Yes

23. If no, when was the last time you got some:


WOULD YOU...

24. Bungee jump: Yes

25. Sky dive: Yes

26. Swim with dolphins: Yes

27. Scuba dive: Yes

28. Go rock climbing: Yes

29. Eat shit for $1,000,000: hahah right.. NOPE

30. Turn your back on your friends for personal gain: No

31. Steal a friend's boyfriend/girlfriend: Nope

32. Cross-dress: haha .. No

33. Lie to the police: Probably

34. Run from the police: Yes

35. Lie to your parents: Maybe...:)

36. Walk up to a stranger and kiss them: No

37. Be an exotic dancer: No-scary thought

38. Walk out of a restaurant without paying: No


EITHER OR...

67. Rock or rap: Rap

68. Rock or pop: Rock

69. Rock or punk: Punk

70. Rock or metal: Rock

71. Rap or pop: Rap

72. Rap or r&b: Rap

73. Rap or metal: Rap

74. Pop or emo: What the sniff is emo

75. Pop or metal: Pop

76. R&b or metal: R&B

77. Linkin park or limp bizkit: Limp Bizkit

78. Tool or korn: dunno either of them

79. Selena or jennifer lopez: dont know them too good.. prob JLo

80. Hot or cold: Cold

81. Winter or summer: Winter

82. Spring or fall: Fall

83. Shakira or britney: Shakira?

84. Icp or eminem: Eminem

85. Marilyn manson or rob zombie: whatever

86. Kittie or garbage: ??

87. Mtv or vh1: Don't own a TV

88. Buffy or angel: Buffy

89. Dawson's creek or gilmore girls: See 87

90. Football or basketball: Football

91. Summer olympics or winter olympics: Winter...?

92. Skiing or snowboarding: Don't do either after getting hurt too many times

93. Rollarblading or skateboarding: Rollerblading

94. Black or white: Black

95. Orange or red: Orange

96. Yellow or green: Yellow?

97. Purple or pink: Purple

98. Slipknot or mudvayne: Slipknot,... maybe

99. Hot topic or pac sun: Not sure

100. Inside or outside: I'm on the beach

101. Weed or alcohol: Alcohol, if i had to choose

102. Cell phone or pager: Cell

103. Pen or pencil: Pencil!

104. Powerpuff girls or charlie's angels: Charlie's Angels

105. Scooby doo or dino: Scooby Doo

106. Dragon ball z or pokemon: Im not a dork

107. Star wars or star trek: sorry there too

108. Tattoos or piercings: Peircings

109. Prep or punk: Punk

110. Slut or whore: me? Haha, interesting

Confusion

If someone insinuates that they want to be a father figure you think you'd expect certain things. Well, here is what I would expect from someone who 'voluntarily' assumes that they have a responsibility. I would expect something OTHER than ONLY telling when I do something they don't think is right. You see, if i'm doing something that they wouldn't think is right, I would already know and for that reason not tell them. But oh well, i'm prob not makin sense. Idk, I mean, if they only time a person makes the effort to talk to me is when they are telling me I should stop doing things, "THAT SUCKS"! But then again, maybe it's me.

Death

Have you ever thought about death? Like where, when, and how you are going to die? I've thought about it recently. But hey it won't do any good. God already knows my time of death, he knew that even before I was born. Disagree? tell me.

Wolf

He attacks and kills any other fish that is put in his tank.

Wolf

He is approx. 9 inches long.

Wolf

This is my Wolf Cichlid

Volleyball

Volleyball tonight was fun, I might just play two hours next week though.

I am looking fwd to my vaca in OC Labor Day week more than I have in any of my 26 years of going down there.

A vaca for me is just bummin n chillin.. nothing planned no schedules or deadlines.. sleep till 10 stay up till 2-3 a.m. .. So if you plan a road trip.. IM OUT! ! ! haha

Tomato Thief Caught

Ok, so it was either my tomato plants or him, he was the odd squirrel out!

Ack

This is me, for those who didn't know

Hit & Run

Well at least my night was not boring and dull. I got wacked by another car tryin to flip a B ! Well at least I gave those puerto Ricans a good scare, even tho I really dont have the connections that I insinuated. But after chasing them for 5 blocks and cutting them off. they were docile little creatures.

Life-how strange

Life is pretty strange. It's been almost one month past 7 years since my parents were gone. It's weird though, I mean, while I would want it no other way, there is still the side of me that wishes something were different. Tonight, i missed them like i'd miss my left arm if it were cut off. Other times i forget to think about them. I guess it depends on when I would want them to be there. I think back at how selfish I was even while my dad was on his death bed. I still wanted to go out and hang w/friends. But thats how i was, I learned from that. But why would i have had it any other way, none of us really thought that he would really die, did we? Naive as we were we never lost faith and never thought that he was going to really die. the comfort in all of this? God, he has got it all under control and it was all planned from the start.


JF

that rock and hard place thing

You know how they say you're between a rock and a hard place? Well I feel like I'm there. It's one of those things where I know what I want to do, but i'm not sure what I should do. But, I'll prob do my normal thing and just not do it just because it's easier not to. That is one trait about me that I don't particularly care for. I'm not sure where that actually developed from, but I have my suspicions.

Sense ??

Picture a tornado like you see in story books. at the top its a really big circle of air. then at its gets down to the bottom it gets narrower and faster and faster. I'm thinking my life is like one of those tornados and im getting to the small swirly part!! Like its big and grand and just coasting along up high. but come back down toward earth and its gets faster and more furious and prone to do damage!

Moods

You ever deal with someone that their moods changed so much in a short period of time that you eventually became reluctant to do/say certain things (that they would normally be receptive to) because you were not sure the current mood? One day they laugh, the next they stare as though you committed the un-pardonable sin. One day that say 'thanks for the help' the next they say 'why do you always butt in my work'. Go figure.

Comments

I have enabled comments on my blog as a trial thing

Call off the alert!!

It's amazing! I only put these black socks in the wash twice a year practically because they always disapear. And, once again they have disappeared.. but fret not,, i've found them. You see with 9 peoples wash being done by one person, its easy to lose things such as my "Sunday Socks".

call off the alert.. i've found them.

Vote Democrat = Hate America?

Well, that is a harsh statement and the Christians who support Democrats will be offended. I am not the most well informed person when it comes to politics and I know that most people at partisan when it comes to elections anyway. You see, it's bad enough the things that John Kerry says and I won't get into that. It is more what his supporters do, no I don't mean his cronies. I mean the radical demonstrators that plan to disrupt the Republican National Convention in New York. Tom Hayden for one. First off and briefly he is asking for volunteers to disrupt NJT during the convention and shut it down. Then he is asking for 6 million volunteers to flood Madison Square Garden area. Is the man really insane? All this plus more that he is planning while he is well aware that al qeada is planning to detonate an Atom Bomb-a nuclear bomb in Madison Square Garden during the convention! A bomb similar to Hiroshima! The CIA has plausible reports that al qeada does indeed have a 10 kiloton nuclear bomb and they also have reason to believe it is infact in NY already. The fact is, there was such a bomb stolen from Russia, (which has several of them). So, if Tom Hayden knowing that possibility of an "American Hiroshima" still wants to clog NY with people, I would hope that is reason enough for his arrest at least until after the convention. (oh wait, that wouldn't be being tolerant!!)

In summary, this is what people will do for the Democratic party and for a man who is not fit for command. And now I only ask Christians this question, but are you still going to vote Democrat (if indeed you do vote)?

Ok, so maybe al qeada's plan will be foiled. What if there is just a bomb scare or other event that calls for evacuation. Madison Square Garden and NYC would be mayhem with just an extra 600,000 people! Tom Hayden, John Kerry, and all the other Democratic party supporters, "Get to know Jesus Christ as your Savior. Hell is a terrible place".

Dirty Word

I'm beginning to think 'tolerant' is a dirty word. So many churches today and so many Christians today think that we have to be tolerant of everyone. "They are entitled to their own opinions and beliefs so we have to be tolerant of them" they say. Well that's not true. If we do not speak out against something that we disagree with when given the chance, the assumption is made that we are for it, when in reality we may just be 'tolerating' it.

The first century Christians at Ephesus actually got it, they knew what it was all about. In Revelation 2;2-3 Jesus himself said to the church at Ephesus, "I know your deeds and your toil and perseverance, and that you cannot tolerate evil men, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false; and you have perseverance and have endured for My name's sake, and have not grown weary." We will notice when we read the next verse, 4, that Jesus says they have all that but they have left their first love. The point being, Jesus Christ himself commended that church for being intolerant of things that were clearly against the Truth of God's Word! And nothing has changed on His part since then.. it is the so-called Christians and the Church as a whole that is falling back and slacking and starting to think that we have to be tolerant of every religion and lifestyle. So who do we roll with? Jesus Christ saying 'be intolerant' or the 21st century professed Christians and left wing politicians saying 'we must be tolerant of everyone'. I choose Jesus Christ, how about you????

Reality

You ever have something happen, or someone say something that must booted you back into reality?? I mean you could be goin along fine and think everything is cool and then be reminded that other people also have their own opinions and sometime share them harshly so that they blow whatever you were thinking, right out of the water!! It's a good thing and a bad thing-so I'll take it as it comes. But I guess the worst part about it is if you wer genuinely trying to help someone and they blow you off with an attitude. Oh well, just get back up and brush yo self off!

Left work a few minutes early today. It's amazing how much 10 minutes at the end of the day are valued when you get to leave early. It makes the evening last longer or something.


It's amusing-my boss was repremanding me about how I handeled another employee. I told my boss, "All you have to do is say the word and I won't get involved in his business again" I told him, "Any given day he is 50% more productive because of me, but if you think im that much of a hindrance, just tell me and he's all yours!". To that my boss said,, "Hmmm I don't know now, maybe I shouldn't say anything".. I just laughed and told him thats what I thought. Humorous to say the least.. My boss is a funny man..


Sometime I think we should have the right to smack certain people upside the head. e.g. those who constantly try to change me!! That pisses me off.

Still Alive

Just a note to say, "I'm still alive". Listening to di.fm on the hard trance channel.

Singing p&w @ my house tonight @ 7 if anyone is interested.

Got rid of the snake the other night.

Enjoying my Amplified Bible. I use it often when I blog.

Tolerant??

Some things such as 'same sex marriage' is just stupid. We as Christians are NOT called to be tolerant of that kind of thing. Teaching evolution in schools? Nah, sorry no tolerance there either. If you disagree I suggest since you can't comment here, read this book and maybe you'll change your stubborn mind.

Sick World

It's a sick world we live in. I'm glad i'm in PA!

Books

Been reading a Jay E. Adams' book "Competent to Counsel". Some pretty ineteresting and enlightening things in the book so far [up to chapter 4]. Never heard of 'Nouthetic Counseling" before but it makes total sense.

Thanks to Pastor Clark, I now own my copy of the coveted.. no wait wrong word.. umm long desired Amplified Bible.. After just 1 hour, I love it already. He also recommened the NLT Study Bible. I'll have to pick it up sometime. I referenced my new Amplified Bible in my daily Bible study and actually posted in my God's Word blog. Take note that is prob the only time you'll see that link on this blog so if your interest is peaked................

JF

ok ok, so i overdid it with the links.. so what? :)

Unsaved Physicians

If we as Christians believe that God is the center of our universe and has created all things and can repair all things. And we as Christians believe that God is supreme and reigns over any and every othe power in the universe. Then why when the average Christian is physically ill, has ailments, needs a counselor, etc. go to someone who does not even acknowledge the existence of our God let alone worship and put their dependance for successs in him??

"From the above text you may assume certain things about the writer. This is to set them straight. I do not condone doctors, medicine etc. in anyway. The post was to say, hey we believe in God, but we're putting our needs in the hands of an unsaved, ungodly man"

Pull the trigger?

I think that more people than we realize have been at the point of pulling the trigger. The one key thing that keeps people from doing that is the realization that every single thing that affects us [good or bad] passes through God first AND everything that happens is somehow going to be for the good of us. Everything, no exceptions. So the next time you wish something could be different... think again.

OSAS??

For some reason it seems that OSAS teachers are much more interested in convincing people of their way of teaching instead of preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The thing that I don't think they realize is that a person cannot change a person's heart. A person's heart has to be changed by the Holy Spirit and that change can only take place when a true repentant attitude is prevalent. ****

The Big 60

60

Next?

Well, Vision Fellowship has taken place on Saturday night and all went well! Better than well! And I am planning our next event, another Vision Fellowship DJ Led Worship? No, well not as of now anyway,, what is it? Not telling now anyway, stay tuned for more details!

Bad

The only film worse than a low budget film, is a low budget christian film!

Day after Vision Fellowship

Well it is the day after. And as usual no one came down or up from anywhere else, BUT God was there in Spirit and that's all that matters. I'm not sure what happened to Frankie Vibe but he wasn't there either. Maybe he only go if he could spin, or maybe he just couldn't make it. Anyway, we had about 15-20 neighborhood kids come in and hang out for awhile. They really did not know what was going on, I think they didn't know what they were taking part in until we prayed at the end.. they just stood there gazing probably wondering what they got themselves into! ha :) But one of the kids gave an email address and wants to know when our next one is. God is great!

Almost the weekend

Well work is slow but work is good because the boss man is cool. Much relaxin time and just sittin on the bench and being an ear for him! thats cool. most of the time! Saturday is approaching fast and a few more details have to be worked out but all will be ok!

Actually I just checked the tastyfresh boards and Frankie Vibe says he will see me on Saturday and asked if he could help out in spinning.. Sadly we cannot put him in to spin this time.. but there is always a next time!!!

Church tonight

Church tonight is a study in Revelation 20, 11-20 "the great white throne" Judgment. I think that that is a subject taht alot of ppl dont want to hear. But tonight. we hear it! The truths and the lies exposed! There will be a judgment and we will be seperated some to Heaven, so to hell! Maybe I'll blog when I get home from church. I probably will but it will most likely be on my other blog (address not yet posted). I started a new blog today, It's a blog/journal on my studies in God's Word and how they apply to my life and my situations. I may someday post the address or if anyone actualy cares what I read, ask for it.

jF

A long time

Its been forever since I last posted but I have some legit reasons.. well maybe sorta legit.. ok maybe none at all. But im back. Partly from planning VF DJ Led WOrship for July 31. Email or IM me for more details!

Congrats to Shauna N. for getting her job @ King College as RD and a few other titles! I pray that the Lord is with you and gives you wisdom and guidance as im sure you need that from time to time :)!

Well, the date is confirmed for August 7 and the DJ is available. Now the big Q who has it in their heart to lead worship for us ? There is a vacancy for a worship leader and we are in prayer for God to give us a leader with a heart for Him. But we are not worried because He will provide! I have to call Tom B. @ Mayfair/Tacony Lodge tomorrow to reserve the building.

So it may have to be Aug. 7, but hey we can't hold it if our main man cannot be there!

sigh

Vision Fellowship DJ Led Worship, next event could possibly be August 14th 2004! More details to follow on here or in the forum.

I like Telecast

So the house was sold today. And how convenient the oriental guy who bought it lives in Brooklyn. That should be great when we need to get ahold of him. As long as he doesn't jack the rent up I'll be happy. The fish are happy too because they get to stay. Speaking of which does anyone want a red eared slider turtle? I got a new painted turtle on Sat. and now i need to find a home for the other one.. if you want him let me know or come get him! You have three days before he becomes soup.

And likewise, I don't like to post regarding anothers blogging. BUT. I see Kelly's point about 'missions' and think Jon kinda misser her point.

A girl who cut herself often said that the blood was her red tears. She felt that the red tears still couldn't express her pain. And most of the time that pain is because of someone elses greediness!

when eating in the bedroom.. the best napkin is an old sock

I also learned that you cannot make someone be your friend. If it don't work out maybe it's the way God wants it. BUT, hold on to the ones who are your friends and don't turn away new ones because true friends are hard to come by! But the truest of true friends is Jesus. He never let me down yet, if you don't know him, get to know him.

I now know that we can be so caught up in the physical, outside appearance, show part of Christianity that we can totally miss the saving grace of Jesus Christ and therefore possibly the eternal home of Jesus Christ also.

Looked at a new car tonight. 97 Crown Vic. I'm not a big fan of red but the price is really right. And the car is in grreat shape. I may just have to get it.

Does the fact that someone sees a psychiatric doctor every week make them a little uhh how do I put this without sounding,,,, crazy.... Or am I?

arrghh. in all CAPS

See now THAT is why I don't vote.

Why does everyone in the "Greatest nation on God's green earth" refuse to mention God or Jesus Christ in the public square. I mean don't we think He deserves a little bit of credit for something??


The Mayflower Compact-The first government document in this land says that:
"Those people came here to propagate the Gospel of Jesus Christ"


Of the 56 that signed the Declaration of Independence 27 had seminary degrees!

Government proclamations on July 4th said "People of America we need to stop and thank God Almighty for what He has done in this nation that he has raised this nation up to propagate the Gospel across the world"

Why is it not a religious holiday anymore.. it was.. for 150 years after the Declaration of Independence!

*Shrugs*

Saturday July 3, 2004 you better show up at Lawncrest for our humble July 4th celebratoin! Be at my house in the a.m. for the parade !! Yeh it usually sucks but its entertaining anyway.. specially the boyscout band !!!!

***I have had friends who like to pick and choose what part of the Christian life they wanted to be involved in. Like, ok, let's see, oh that part of it would make me change so i can't do that. And oh, no I want to be a Christian but I can't give up that. I mean people did it in the Bible so I'm sure I'll still get to Heaven. And that, oh, God will understand, I'm addicted, God understands and won't hold it against me. I'm forgiven, I'm saved, God chooses my life now, God took my freewill all I do is His choice now. But the Bible mentions that Paul did something like 'this' once so if God forgave him, he'll forgive me too. I'm a Christian,I just don't hold alot of your values but I'm sure God will still take me to Heaven. Faith in God? what do you mean, I'm saved, why do I need faith in God. I'm going to heaven anyway, what difference does it make. Oh, sin isn't that bad once you are saved. Once you are saved you can never go to Hell for sinning, you will just lose some rewards in Heaven, but no hell no matter what you do !!!! ***
_____________________________________
Ok, believe it or not, all that I just typed I have actually heard. I do not agree with it but people really do believe that way!! It's time to pray for them.

Silver Sharpies make good tatoo markers

I think that every person, every so often, stops and thinks, "What's my purpose? When do things change? Where am I headed?" If you've never had any of those thoughts, you are unique i'd like to talk to you. I don't think such a person exists.

September 11, 2001 terrorists flew planes into an American land mark and killed 3,000 people. The nation vowed to "Never Forget" and countrieds around the world pledged trillions of dollars in the vengance of the 3,000 that were killed. It was considered the worst terrorist attack in american history. People wrote songs, poems, books, etc about it and made millions! President Bush as set out to wipe out terrorists in the world and many nations are helping him. thousands of coalition soliders are being killed for their countries and for freedom. Many homes are being ruined and broken. People are comitting suicide because they cannot take what they go through in the foreign countries that they are stationed in. All this for 3,000 innocent lives that America vowed to "NEVER FORGET"! But it seems that we force ourselves to forget and overlook that staggering FACT that 30,000 children die from hunger EVERYDAY! 30,000 children a day die in this world every day because we are spending too much time and money on a controversial war in comparison to what our great nation spends on feeding hungry children around the world!! We go nuts and spend trillions on a war that many argue shouldn't have been faught and we let innocent children who never had a chance, die because we "Always forget" , we force ourselves to forget about them! The majority of the people in the Trade towers were adults who had lived a good life for a decent amount of years and had the oppurtunity to choose what direction their life was going in or at least had a chance! The kids in these third world countries are living in poverty at the fault of someone else and everyone turns their head! What's wrong with us?

Matthew 25- “Inasmuch as you have done it unto one of the least of these my brothers, you have done it unto me.”

They are called the liberal left secular Democrats for a reason. Notice the word 'secular' not 'Christian'. Hmmmm.

As a note to Deb and kelly Hoster..... Fred McNaughton says,"Tell them we missed them up here, they are good people!"

One week later and I'm back from Creation! It rocked more than ever!

I leave for Creation on Monday. So I won't blog for a week but I have an excuse.. I have mixed emotions about going this year!

Kelly and Debra aren't going. That's too bad, its sad. Keep Kelly in your prayers, she needs God's healing touch very badly. Keep in prayer that the very same God who made her body will bring it back to perfect health again! That prayer is based on the righteousness that Jesus Christ gives us through Him!


AHHHH a whole week of doing what I want!

had probs getting my computer to sign on for awhile. but now its all cool.

getting ready for creation, its pretty cool tho because im only prepin for 4 of us instead of the whole 20 or so as usual! 4 go up on Monday and the rest on Tues. thats cool tho.

Should I point out everything I don't like in other people and say I won't be like that? No, that would mean I am trying to make you think something of me that I may not really be. I am who I am if you don't think so, maybe you don't know me well enough.

I'm hungry. time for breakfat.. first time i blogged in the A.M. i think!

"If we cannot believe God when circumstances seem be against us, we do not believe Him at all."

Ah, and it still holds true, "Only boring people get bored".

"Nothing compares to the greatness of knowing you, Lord"

Do your parents ever hit you?
Do your parents ever argue?
Do your parents realize the importance of staying together at all costs?
Do your parents love you?
Do your parents love each other?
Do your parents live together?
Do your parents know you?

A father told his son; "The reason why I have been faithful to your mother for 25 years is because, one, because I love her dearly, and two, because I know that if I were to screw this up, it would follow my kids and grandkids"

That was a wise father indeed!

Politics in a church are not good, although they are probably in every church in America. Some pastors can make a point or stress and opinion and then spend alot of time backing and supporting their statements that they get off base to the truth of God's word. (and btw, that statement is not directed at either of my two loved pastors).

THE BIG FOUR O
4 0

aka "40"

Word of the day: "Perception"

It's amazing; A person could argue with themselves and try to justify themselves or make themselves feel good about something, merely because of another person. But then again isn't that what our conscience is for? If a person's conscience were to bother them wouldn't that be an indicator of sin? Or at least wrong doing? idk. But it is amusing.

1Peter 3:15-16 "Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander."

That's a good reminder for me to watch how I talk about fellow Christians let alone how they talk about me.

!!39!!

My newest pet. A red eared slider. btw, its a turtle

He can't remember
The times that he thought
Does my daddy love me?
Probably not
That didn't stop him
From wishing that he did
Didn't keep him from wanting
Or worshipping him

He guesses he saw him
About once a year
He could still feel the way he felt
Standing in tears
Stretching his arms out
As far as they'd go
Whispering dad
I want you to know

I love you this much
And i'm waiting on you
To make up your mind
Do you love me too?
How ever long it takes
I'm never giving up no matter what
I love you this much

He grew to hate him for what he had done
'cause what kind of father
Could do that to his son?
He said 'damn you daddy'
The day that he died
The man didn't blink
But the little boy cried

I love you this much
And i'm waiting on you
To make up your mind
Do you love me too?
How ever long it takes
I'm never giving up no matter what
I love you this much

Half way through the service
While the choir sang a hymn
He looked up above the preacher
And he sat and stared at him

He said
'forgive me father'
When he realized
That he hadn't been unloved
Or alone all his life
His arms were stretched out
As far as they'd go
Nailed to the cross
For the whole world to know

I love you this much
And i'm waiting on you
To make up your mind
Do you love me too?
How ever long it takes
I'm never giving up no matter what
I love you this much

“Nothing compares to the greatness of knowing You, Lord”. Mac Powell said it best when he said; “Those words that were spoken and written by the Apostle Paul apply just as much to our lives today as they did 2000 years ago when he wrote them. That in our lives no matter where we could go, or who we could meet or what we could see or what we could earn or be given to us or accomplish, there is nothing in our lives that well ever even come close to the greatness of knowing Jesus Christ our Lord.”
And as the familiar song goes, “I’ve heard all the stories; I’ve seen all the signs; Witnessed all the glory; Tasted all that’s fine; Still nothing compares to the greatness of knowing You, Lord! I see all the people; wasting all their time; Building up their riches; for a life that’s fine; -- I find myself just living for today; Cause I don’t know what tomorrow’s gonna bring; So no matter if I rise or fall I’ll never be alone, oh no; Because, Nothing compares to the greatness of knowing You, Lord!”
Sometimes it seems like our journey as followers of Christ is characterized by our ability to let go of things that were never in our control in the first place. Yet scripture encourages us to hold firmly to our faith. Ironically, we are unable to accomplish either goal in our own strength. It is vitally important that we have complete dependence on God for anything and everything.
Knowing our Lord Jesus Christ and knowing of Jesus are two different things. There are billions of people that know of Jesus, every demon that exists knows of Jesus and is terrified. Many people who call themselves Christians also know of Jesus and are content with just knowing of Him. But when we come to the realization that we need to put our complete dependence in Jesus Christ and live by His every word, it will have a profound impact on our lives.
There is nothing that this world could ever produce or imagine that could ever come close. . . to the greatness of knowing our Lord Jesus Christ. The reason for that statement could be broken down into one simple sentence; “Those who never know the Lord will not enter the kingdom of God”.
Matthew 5:20, “For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven”.
Matthew 7:21, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”
Matthew 18:3, “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven”
Matthew 19:23-24, “Then Jesus said to his disciples, “I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
Those verses are all great reminders that, contrary to popular belief there are people who will not go to Heaven. There are many who say, “Lord, Lord” but never experience the greatness of really knowing Him.
If we truly know the Lord we will also love the Lord. John 14:15, “If you love me, you will obey what I command.” How many of us do what we want instead of what Jesus commands and still claim to love Him? It was once said “The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians, who acknowledge Jesus with their lips and walk out the door and deny Him by their lifestyles. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable!” How true it is though, we go to church and learn valuable Bible truths, then we walk out of church and from the very car we drive to the smallest thing at home, we take our own course of action and see the Bible truths we just learned as just ‘mere suggestions’. It ends up being a life of justification of why we act differently than the Bible teaches.
I guess it comes down to ‘where do we harbor what is great to us?’ Do we harbor it in Jesus Christ or in a house, a car, a person, a job or a host of other things that can become idols to us? The greatness that we harbor must be in the Son of God, Jesus Christ! There is greatness in knowing His son. That greatness begins with getting rid of looking out for ourselves and making sure we have everything we want and put that emphasis on knowing Jesus more intimately. It is a relationship, a bride and groom relationship. Now what relationship would be healthy if both parties just knew of each other? We want a healthy intimate relationship with Jesus Christ and the only way to have that is to rid ourselves of anything that is not in God’s will. It’s called radical amputation! These are things in our life that are luxuries, or just plain ‘not God’s will’ that we convince ourselves are ‘ok’ because we just want to have them. When we truly know the Lord we will have no desire to have these ‘questionable’ things. When we truly know the Lord we will not have to justify things and find scripture that ‘allows’ us to do or have something. Instead using the scriptures to back up our course of action to abstain from world influenced policies, forms of entertainment and convenience.
Many times we are tempted to do things that are contrary to God’s will in the name of convenience, or to avoid persecution. James 1:2-3 “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance”. James is telling us that when, not IF, when we are persecuted for our faith in Christ, consider it pure joy. We are not to avoid doing what’s right or do something that is wrong, just so we aren’t persecuted. It’s called witnessing for the Lord and sharing our faith. When we truly know the Lord, we will understand that we cannot compromise our faith so that we do not get made fun of, receive a citation, or even get fired at work. A great Bible example is Daniel 3:13-15 13Furious with rage, Nebuchadnezzar summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king, 14and Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up? 15Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?” Those three were promised death by burning if they did not bow to the image that Nebuchadnezzar had made. Think how easy it would have been to just bend their backs to avoid death. The reason they did not is because they had faith in God, the truly experienced the greatness of knowing God! Listen to the response that they gave to the king; “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. 18But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” They stood up for their faith because they knew God and were witnessing and proclaiming the greatness of Him. So before we sign that policy, passively agree, or compromise scripture to avoid persecution we must think back to the decision that Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego made and the mighty faith they had in a mighty God! They could have diluted what was really taking place and said “it is only bending our back, it is not worshiping”, But they chose not to. We could dilute our chance to witness for Christ and not compromise by saying things such as “it’s only a strap on my waist, I don’t depend on it for protection” when talking about a seatbelt. Or “it’s just so I can get a decent car, I would never claim insurance” when talking about insurance policies, all the while disregarding what we actually agreed to.
When we truly know the Lord, we will marvel over the greatness of it. Nothing can come close to the greatness! We will forget all the compromises that we previously made and give God the benefit of the doubt. When there is a doubt about something being scriptural or not, we may dwell on it for awhile and eventually convince ourselves to justify what we want instead of God’s will. That is a sign that we do not really know the Lord. The most important decision that we could ever make is to commit all, surrender all, and give up everything to the Lord Jesus Christ! There is nothing worth holding onto that is not in God’s will.
Knowing the Lord and living by the Word of God is so vitally important it
cannot be overstated! Psalm 1:7 “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.” It seems that more and more young people are throwing solid teaching to the wind and doing their own thing and calling it truth. Does what we do have to be justified as being right, or is what we do a witness for Christ and a statement of truth? If we spend more time justifying our actions and decisions than we do witnessing for Christ by our actions and decisions…. We do not know the greatness of knowing the Lord!! There is work in order indeed if that be the case.
No compromise, no luxury of convenience that is objectionable, nothing is worth sacrificing truly knowing Christ. We may feel like we know the Lord and say we love Him, but if there is an idol in our life or we habitually sin or we have or do something outside of God’s will, we do not really know the Lord Jesus Christ like we say we do.
1Corinthians 8:13 “Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause him to fall.” If our choice or possession or policy (that was originally doubted) causes our brother in Christ to fall into sin because he also does it, “get rid of it and never visit the thought of it again” is what Paul is saying! You see, it does not matter that it is only I that is doing something. It actually affects a lot more than just me if I make questionable choices. There are a lot of choices in the Christian life and in all of our decisions it is of dire importance that we give God the benefit of the doubt! We may lose possessions, money, friends, or anything but will be blessed because it was for the glory of the Lord! Matthew 19:29 “And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.” Humans by nature are stubborn. And when it comes time to choose between right and wrong, life and death, blessing or cursing, we stubbornly choose the worse of the two because it is camouflaged as truth! But if we are truly seeking God’s will and chasing after the heart of God with all we have, we will find it and we will be righteous through Jesus Christ.
Nothing compares to the greatness of knowing You, Lord! When we reach the place of truly knowing the Lord Jesus, there will be a revival in our life. We will no longer doubt what God can do for us. We will have complete faith for healing, protection and guidance. There is no end to what God will do for us when we truly know, love and worship Him!
Psalm 18:1-3, “I love you, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call to the LORD, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies.” Are they just words in your life, maybe good suggestions for living, or are they the words that you live by? God has to be number one in our lives there is no other way to live.
What It is a lot easier for a person to pull you down than for you to pull them up! Give up those who could pull you down. It’s time to be real, be honest and do it for your sake and the glory of God! What about the company that we keep? Do our close friends represent a life that really knows the Lord Jesus Christ? You may have good morals but if you keep bad company you will soon compromise them because the Bible says so. 1Corinthians15:33, “Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.”
Philippians 3:8, Paul says, “I consider everything a loss in comparison to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ” Paul has come to the realization that next to the great privilege of knowing Jesus Christ, everything else is trash!
Luke 12 tells the story of the rich man who bragged about his riches and how he would kick back, relax and just take it easy. He planned to just live it up and enjoy all the things that he had accumulated. Verses 19-21 tell the rest of the story, "And I'll say to myself, 'You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry. "But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?' This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God." Wouldn’t we rather be rich toward God than to be foolishly focused on material possessions or distracted by a relationship that keeps us from enjoying all that is ours in Jesus Christ? A rich person in the Bible is sometime thought of as someone who is far from us. But when we focus more on our money, making it and spending it and our spiritual life lacks, we are included in the category that the Bible calls rich. At that point all the verses that make reference to ‘the rich man’ now apply to us. Time for changes indeed! A popular belief is that those ‘rich man’ verses only apply to Bill Gates and Donald Trump, but it is more of an attitude toward money and possessions than the amount that we have. Just consider! The very Creator of the Universe, The King of Kings, Almighty God wants to fellowship with you. He wants you to know Him and He wants you to enjoy the riches of His grace! Eph. 1:7, “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace. Now what could be greater than that?
A major step in getting to know God more intimately is resisting temptation and not giving into even the subtle suggestions of the devil. Many things that we do that are questionable started out as mere suggestions from the devil, a.k.a. major temptation. The next step was easy because if it looks good to this generation, generally we go for it! This more than any other is a generation out looking for pleasure and fun. Looking out for ourselves and at all costs satisfying ourselves. In our pursuit for pleasure, we have turned away from our Glorious God, the only One who can forever satisfy us. In fact, He is a fountain of living waters in which He longs to quench our every desire. Yet so many of us have turned away from Him, and tried finding pleasure in worldly things. Money will never satisfy. Sex will never satisfy. Cars, big houses, a simple life, volunteering, alcohol, drugs, the American dream: nothing can satisfy us except God. In fact, all things except God are "broken cisterns that can hold no water." We are fooled by pleasures that don't last. The things that we spend our time on and consume are the water we drink. Just as Jesus told the woman at the well that He could give her ‘living water’, He is offering us that same ‘living water’. We seek after bitter water when we spend our time in addiction, luxury, money and a host of other potential idols. We must replace the consumption of the bitter dead water with the Living Water of God’s word and God’s Truth!
I think that shedding light on the Devil's deceitful tactics can greatly help us in resisting him. We must realize that sin is anything we try to satisfy the longing of our soul with other than God. It’s time we drag our sin out into the light where it will die because sin loves the darkness! The pleasures of sin don't last. Only God can satisfy the desires of our heart. You'll never be satisfied with just dabbling in sin, just sipping the cup of sin. Sin begins as a pet, but quickly becomes your master. It will never have lasting satisfaction! We become tricked into thinking that if we dive deeper into the worldly things we pursue for pleasure, they will satisfy us. Yet, pretty soon we are drowning. The sin took a firm grip of our life and we are left wondering what happened. We can't allow the Devil to trick us into thinking that anything other than God can satisfy our soul. Many times we justify the things of the world that we do saying, “I am not depending on these things to satisfy my soul”. But that also is a tactic of the devil to get us thinking that these things are not harmful to us. “I am strong, I can stand up to this, it will not master or affect me, I am firm in Christ”. They are all haughty self assured statements and we are setting ourselves up for a big fall if we believe that! Knowing the Lord also includes resisting the devil. We cannot be a friend of the devil and claim to be a friend of the Lord. Revelation 3:16, “So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” With God you cannot even be lukewarm you are either for Him or against Him.
Never forget that God is a fountain of living water and He longs for us to come and quench the longing of our soul in Him.
King David was “A man after God’s own heart”, in other words he sought after the heart of God. King David had things in perspective in what he had to say about God: "Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth." (Psalm 73:25) "On You I wait all the day." (Psalm 25:5) "In Your presence there is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore." (Psalm 16:11) "Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart."(Psalm 37:4)
David did not desire anything on earth. His sole desire was for God. The one thing he asked for was to be in the presence of God. David knew that in Christ alone is where we find the fullness of joy.
We can't help but talk about what we are in love with! Be it a boyfriend or girlfriend, a video game, a favorite band, sports, money or Jesus Christ. What do we spend most of our time talking about? Is it sports, money, or a person? That is a sure indicator of what we really love. Only 2% of professing Christians share their faith regularly, talk about forgetting our First Love! Are we in that 2% of Christians? Do people point out that we are a Christian when we are around them, or do our language, tolerances, actions, and our disposition reflect more of the world than Christ? It’s time for a spiritual inventory.
Hebrews 11:25-26 “[Moses] chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.” Take a lesson from Moses, he knew that sin was unfulfilling and fleeting. Although it promises great things it will always leave us hanging in the end. As you might say to a friend, “Don’t leave me hangin”, it is impossible to say that to sin, although we say it every time we accept that it will make us contented.
Knowing our Lord, Jesus Christ is more than just frequenting church and doing good deeds. It is an intimate relationship with Him. "Have you discovered Jesus Christ as your treasure which you value more than everything else? The answer to this question is life changing, "because where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matt. 6:21). Every professing Christian will say ‘yes’ to that question, but statistics show that that is not true. “Only 2% of professing Christians share their faith regularly.” We talk frequently about what we are in love with. What do we talk regularly about?
In closing think about this: There are actually things that can and will keep a lot of people on this earth, out of heaven. These are people who professed and believed that they were saved and going to heaven. What will go wrong then, that they not make it to eternal life with Jesus Christ? They didn’t choose to know Jesus on a personal intimate level. They knew of Jesus and claimed they loved Him and that he was their personal savior. But when everything comes to an end there will be those who chose life and those who chose death. It is all a choice and our choice must be in Jesus Christ. When we think about the seriousness of our decisions and that they could land us in hell, they take on a whole new meaning. It is not just ourselves that we affect with unwise unscriptural decisions either. There are people, young people who look up to us and take everything we do as right and acceptable. How horrible would it be if we misled a young Christian with a decision that was not in line with scripture? Matthew 18:6 “But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.” You see, it could be a decision now that we know is wrong but will change it later. That decision could lead a young Christian down the wrong path. A son said to his father, “Dad I know this is probably not the best thing but this is how I want to do it for right now”. That son was soon to leave the truth of God and build his faith in God around what suited him best. We must be strong, standing firm, not wavering for our own sake, for the sake of those who look up to us, but ultimately for the glory of God!

“Nothing compares to the greatness of knowing You, Lord!”

Lord grant us the ability to throw down our idols, to break off unscriptural fellowship, to put you first, to realize that everything we do affects us in one way or another. Dear Lord, the truth is that nothing compares to the greatness of knowing You, help me to hold that at the forefront of my mind, to use it as a weapon of truth. Sure Lord, I know that there are a lot of things that I could do or things I could have, but when in comparison to the sheer magnificence of You and the fact that those things of the world would not bring glory to You, they are worthless. Lord let us all come to the realization that nothing will ever compare to You and nothing in this world is worth compromising our faith in You.

My thoughts

JF

June 10, 2004