April 15, 2010

Having friends is nice, no doubt about that. You can hang out with them, talk with them, be yourself comfortably with them, and all that good stuff. But as brothers and sisters in Christ we are called to do more than just that aren't we. All of us have "friends who are agreeable, and we have friends who are more than agreeable. Don't get me wrong, its nice to agreed with sometimes, but it is amazing to be corrected.

A true friend is truely abitter-sweet thing. Bitter in the fact that a lot of times I must put aside my pride to accept some good advice, and on the rare occassion put aside personal comfort and fear to offer some myself. It's hard to do these things. And for the most part there is no easy way to do it, or comfortable feeling that I get from it. It is simply not pleasent. But Christ confronted sin, He bore our sin, He was shamed for us, He was beat for us, HIS OWN FATHER LET HIM DIE FOR ME! So the least I can do is try to emulate some form him, no matter how hard or uncomfortable it is.

But with such bitterness comes blessing. A sweet, sweet blessing. How good it is to know that I have friends that would go through such uncomfortable feelings to point something out. And know that when I screw up the courage to likewise point something out, that they will listen. It most certainly can be a sin that they point out, but sometimes it can be bringing something to the spotlight that might not be a sin but it would certainly be benificial to work on.

Thank you friend. For showing me a place for improvement. I look forward to working on it and trying to amend it. I look forward to a time when I can repay you in the same way. And I don't mean tha in the sense that I'm going to be scrutinizing every little thing you or any of my friends are doing to find places I can confront and correct in, that is not the spirit in which Christ or, I believe, you have confronted me in. It is rather a spirit of love, the kind that is selfless enough do such things graciosly and with love. Lately I have been realizing just how important this spirit of love is for the Church to posses, it is our bond that Christ sealed. I have come to see just how wonderful it is to be corrected and correcting in love. I encourage all who read this, it is our duty to do this, without it there might as well be no Church body, we might as well go live in the woods by ourselves with our lack of love.

What is comfortable is not always good,
What is good is not always comfortable,
But doing good, be it comfortable or not, is always a blessing.

March 1st, 2010

Basketball season comes to a close, not quite the ending I wanted but ya can't win 'em all. through out this season my team hasbeen there for me, helping me along. My coach has been there for me, building me as a player. But after one year of hockey, six years of basketball, and three years of football. no one has beenn there throughout those times like my father has. Coming to every game he possibly could to support me, to pick me up, or on the rare occasion slap me upside the head and tell me to get going. Dad, your prayers with me before games meant so much, courage, strength, grace, intregrity, love, and even more. You are a guide to life, a staff to help me along, a map to show somewhat of a way, and a man that I will strive to emulate. God certianly shows himself through you and I'm so grateful for your support.






And who can forget the brains of the operation. A Mom, but not just any mom, MY MOM. Reluctant at first to give in to things like football, but in the end the last to let go. Mom who washed my uniforms when I forgot. The most excited after a win and the most downhearted it seemed after a loss. Always ready to hold me :) no matter how big I have gotten. Finding you after a game for my all done hug was my light at the end of the game, and what a beautiful light you are. Unselfish, self sacrificing, all encompassing love. A mom in every sense of the word. Thankyou for the gift that only a mommy can give... a mothers love.






And to my ever supportive family. I love you all


























What a blessing you all are!!!

Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Philippians 4:5


A true blessing.

January 27

Summer is hot in Klamath Falls, but that doesn't mean that a bare patch of ground cannot produce something lush and beautiful. Here in the high desert it tends to dry out in the midsummer when ponds dry and grasses wither and turn brown. This is not Ireland or New Zealand, we have water shortages, water crisiss, and suckerfish troubles. But every year something special happens, winter. Winter is when the snow comes down and provides a use for sleds, fireplaces, and many more enjoyable pasttimes. Most importantly though the snow sticks deep in the mountains and hills, pilingly up and up and up. A snowpack. This snowpack will melt slowly making runoff streams that feed ponds, lakes, and irrigation ditches providing water late into the thirsty summer. Giving norishment, promoting growth, and providing fruit.

I am Klamath Falls dirt. There are times in my life when the wettness of spring give way to hot arid desert. The late summer times in my life when there seems to be nothing to work with, nothing to grow in, and ultimately no fruit. But God has built up a snowpack! Like jumping into a high mountain lake on a hot day, the revitalizing shock of what He has provided give new life to this patch of dry ugly ground that makes up Jordan. A snowpack that is composed of the most wonderful things. The natural beauty around me that speaks of nothing but the almighty God. Godly men and women that provide awesome examples and many words of wisdom. Encouraing friends giving support, repremand, encouragement, and much more. Family to guide and test me, heaping on love and caring hugs. And the Word of the Lord which is the ultimate lighthouse to show the way, and the 3D picture of God's love and perfect being.

Guess what! It's snowing in my life! God is establishing a snowpack that has me so very excited. It gives me irrepressable shivers of joy to think of the summer that I could survive with what God is providing and storing up in me. The blessings of mentors, great friends, loving family, and the Word of God. "sigh"

May the Lord walk beside me and you to comfort us.
May the Lord walk above me and you to watch over us.
May the Lord walk behind me and you to keep us safe safe.
May the Lord walk before me and you to show us the way.

January 10th

I am an active 18 year old, whom God has blessed with the semi-ability to play sports and take part in many physical activities. The best football player in school, the best basket ball player in school, and the all around best athlete in school... is not me, not by a long shot. But I do ok at these things and have found a way to contribute to the teams. Coming into basketball season I happily found that I could jump high enough to grab the rim, run up and down the court quickly, and not get tired out fast doing these things.

However, in last nights game I also found that jumping up and falling back down on the pointy part of your hip bone greatly inhibits such actions. Along with not being able to run and jump very well, the actions of sitting, standing, and laying down hurt to.

But, though it hurts physically on the outside, it feels good spiritually on the inside. Now, not only do I know that God has his ways of heading off any rising pride, but I feel it too. Lord thank you for this thorn in my side, it was, is, and will be necessary in the future.

On a different note, I burned my hand while playing with the little fireball thing, thanks Tyler for the hours of enjoyment and pain that you started. Next time don't show me such an entertaining way of eventually hurting myself!

January 6th

Oh boy am I tired. I'm gunna make this one short.

A chuckle. Not quite as loud or brash as a laugh but still there, gently helping to ease or bring out even the quietest of smiles. I think God chuckles predominently, it seems fitting.

January 5th

Oh it started out all wrong. Lying in bed this morning after my alarm went off, I fell into the awful practice of telling ones self, "just a little longer, I'll lay my head back down while I collect my thoughts." Dangerous! Before ya know it your shower time eats into your breakfast time which spills into getting dressed time which spills into driving time and it just gets worse from there. On top of that a sad fact hit me while driving, the snow is almost gone! We didn't have a white Christmas and it hasn't stuck around since so it is hard to accept that it is winter. When looking outside I just get this dismal feeling that makes me upset. What comfort is there for a cold or runny nose when there wasn't even a great day of sledding or playing in the snow to blame it on?

But on this gray down-trodden looking world today it rained, and that is the blessing that caught my eye today. It wasn't a spirit dampenning rain that takes the clouds out of the sky and puts them in your heart and mind. It wasn't the terenchal downpour that is excitingly powerful yet destructive. Instead it was the happy light hearted pitter-patter, hardly discernable at a glance but when I did take notice a slight smile played across my face. Unfortunety there was not enough to mke puddles to jump in, but I did allow myself some few moments of foolish dancing in the parking lot during 8th period. But who could resist that cold rejuvinateing sprinkle that that makes the world seem big and open and full of happyness.

Though others may not have got the same feeling from the rain that I did, I thank God for the joyeness that He showed me in such a darn awful winter.

January 4th

Time. Ya can't fabricate it. Ya can't really save it. ya can't touch, buy, or hold back time. It is subject to no one but God and only He can maniplulate it or transend it. It goes on no matter what and is always constant but how is it that it can be so hard to find time? Well maybe I'm looking in the wrong places, in fact I know that I often am. But even with my foolish searching God saw fit to grant me with plenty of it today. I didn't have to rush anywhere, hurry, or cut corners. It all just fell into place and made for a very stress free day.

It feels good to slow down in lifenot only stopping to smell the roses but to contemplate their creation and almighty creator. 55 mph seemed plenty fast enough (sorry to those who might have got stuck behind me) and didn't make to much of a difference. Now all thats left is to have enough sleep time :)

January 3rd

Blessing: 1. a favor or gift bestowed by God. This this is the key of my writings on this blog. To explore, seek out, dissern, and realize the blessing given to me by God, and to rejoice, exault, and praise Him for them. But by blessing I do not just mean such things as "thank you that I lived through today", though it is only by Gods good grace and mercy that any of us survive at all. No, I want to really search each day to find something that God has place for me, a spectacular sunset, certaim words of encouragement, an unexpected gift of whatever be it hug or a tangeble thing, and even the trials and tribulations by which I learn the lessons of life.

Now I am a 18 year old boy, not a great theologian, not an amazing writer of the blog world, and not someone who can be called an athority on any subject. Young and imature, willing to learn, capable of mistakes, and a blessed person is wqhat I am. So do not be suprised if some of my posts contain something odd, question me about it if you like and forgive my awful spelling.

I would like to begin with something that I have noticed before and showed up again today on a long bus ride home from a bball game. The blessing of a good book with a message that reached me on several levels. It is called "Just Do Something" by Kevin DeYoung, and deals with the will of God. I opened it several weeks ago and reached the end of chapter two, and it was off to an inauspicious start for me. Just seeming like more of the same that I had heard most of my life. But after this book was rerecommended to me I took it on the trip to get it over with. Right from the start of chartper three it gripped me and changed my view. A truely great book for those who are "unsure" like myself. Thank you God fro the book and wisdom that it carries.