i’ve realized i need to amend my previous entry. my last post had an underlying suggestion that i need to correct. just a few minutes ago i was reading chapter 8 in the book Blue Like Jazz by donald miller. it was a great chapter. he discussed the reasons people tend to stray from christianity to other ‘religions’ or away from spirituality all together. he talked about how people try to mold God into their own wants or needs… to fit the TREND... and when God doesn’t fit into their little designer box, they give up all together. appropriate timing right? i think my previous post had the underlying suggestion that “everything is a trend.” i just want to make it clear that my Jesus is not a trend… my faith is not a trend… our relationship is not a trend. My God always has been and always will be consistent and true to His Word and my life. He is NOT a trend.

this week the trend

trends are something that very much interest me. we all follow them, whether we like it or not. maybe not the most popular one, but a trend none the less. what do you think when you hear the word 'trend'? the first thing that pops into my head is clothes... fashion trends. from bellbottoms to ripped jeans, trends come and go. now, right now you may be thinking i don't wear abacrombie or pop my collar, i'm breaking the trend... are you really, or are you just following another less popular trend? another thing that has the tendency to be very trend-ish is television. 'reality' tv... need i say more? one other thing that seems to be trendy... the thing i was thinking about that made me write this post... is words. especially slang words... 'cool, groovy, tight, far out, keen, awesome, boss, etc.' get the point? as time passes trends change... these words all basically mean the same thing, but did the people of the 50's say the same things as we do today? no! why... the trend. two other words pop into my head are... 'random' and 'awkward'. seriously, how many times did you hear those words today? someone does something just slightly weird and you say, 'that was awkward!' or something unexpected happens and no sooner do you blink than you hear someone exclaim 'random!'
now i'm not at all one of these anti trend people, and i'm sorry if this post seems that way... it's not at all. in fact, i enjoy trends... maybe not the most popular, but as i said, a trend none the less. i mean when it comes to clothes... i'm not the kind thats going to spend $40 on a t-shirt or $100 on a pair of ripped jeans... but to each his own. i mean i'm sure lots of people would think i'm ridiculous for taking the time to write about this... but hey, its just how i am. well there you have it... just another RANDOM thought from my RANDOM mind.

the awkward message

well i've been in college for almost two months now and i'm loving every minute of it. i've made lots of great friends and done a lot of fun stuff already... but that's not the point of this post....
i've found a church down here i really like called Crosspoint Church and our pastor, Daniel Lucas, is the man. he's funny and easy to listen to, but most importantly, he preaches the truth. he's so real with his church. this past sunday he started a new series called "hostage." unfortunately i'm going to miss the majority of the series due to 'circumstances beyond my control' :) but again, not the point. the point of this series is to talk about different current issues that hold christians 'hostage' from truly living the free, joyful life Christ has designed for us. the topic form this past week was money. financial difficulty is one of the most common struggles among people today, and christians are not excluded from this statistic. now we all know that the Bible commands tithing... and that brings me to the point. a good pastor preaches the truth right? and the truth about christians and money is that we need to tithe... i've always felt sorry for good truth preaching pastors when they have to talk about tithing. you can tell it feels awkward for them, and i think that's a good thing. you can tell they are struggling so much because they don't want it to seem like they're asking for money, but, to a point they are (for their church)... and it's the right thing to do. now understand, i'm not talking about these televangelists who ask for money and say that all your wildest dreams will come true if you give to them. i'm talking about humble pastors who simply want to preach the truth. and again, don't get me wrong, it's true, God will bless those who give as he commands, but those blessings may not be returned financially and they may not be immediate...
so i really have no solution to this... i don't even know if it requires a solution... those we're just some thoughts that came to me and i thought i'd share.

watch this

late nights and politics

so i had a discussion with mom last night about the upcoming election and politics. i wouldn't call it an argument, more of a defense of different stances. as we had this conversation i realized how uneducated i was when it comes to the realm of politics. i thought i knew my fair share. i thought i had a good grasp on my views. i don't though. i need to learn more. i need to know what's going in the world around me, and most importantly, i need to be able to interpret it from a Biblical standpoint. that was one of the things that shocked me the most about myself... i realized i didn't have solid scriptural backing for what i believed. i'm going to get better at this. i'm going to study the issues through the eyes of Christ. what's really right?

there will be more to come on these issues...