On growing up and blamelessness and living Miracles

I'm not 100% when the transition was made from child to adult. I don't think I remember waking up one morning, and having this thought in my head, telling me I'm suddenly an adult. Obviously, becoming 18 years old was a pretty big deal. And, in the eyes of the world, 21 should have been a bigger deal than it was.
These thoughts I have in my head these days are beyond me sometimes. Conversations with friends about topics I never would have dreamed I'd comprehend, much less want to even think about. Blamelessness, brother/sister relationship in Christ, baptism of the Holy spirit, Body of Christ, Church, church, Hawaii, Houston.
Sometimes I need encouragement. As it is, I doubt is not something I struggle with at the present moment, however I do honestly wonder how far I've really come in these past crazy 4 years of college. And all it seems I have to do it take a look back at those years, at the person I was, and then take a sober look at who I am now.

I.am.a.living.miracle.

So, that's a little intense you may say. And I would venture to say it doesn't begin to describe things. Miracles from God generally exist for one purpose: To bring you into a deeper knowledge of Himself. By healing you, by raising you from the dead, from giving you life and breath, He seeks to be known more fully by you. You.Are.The.Miracle. Do we grasp this? Do we grasp that our God is a God of the supernatural, the ever-healing Presence? You once were dead, lost in a world full of bondage, sin and hatred. And at some point (and maybe this hasn't even happened for some of you), you had an encounter with the living God. And from that moment on, you were never the same. No, so your addiction didn't go away over night (or maybe it did), or your thought processes were still roughly the same (or maybe they weren't). It's taken God 4 years to work some things out in my life. Do I *blame* God for that? I praise Him! He is working in my life! Who am I to put a time-restraint on that?
And now, do you understand what happens when we have this perspective?
The focus in no longer on the *means by which the miracle occurs*. Yes, we praise God for the healed infirmity, yes we praise God for the moment of inconceivable Joy we experience, and yes we praise God for the money which seemed like it would never come. However, all of those things have their purpose and their place: To draw you into a deeper and more intimate relationship with your Heavenly Father. Do we grasp that? Are we able to look past His gifts towards He who gives them?
You.Are.The.Miracle.
Praise Him and accept His invitation to be known in a more full and intimate way.

On Life.....

So I want to blog, but every time I sit down at the chair, and and attempt to begin, my thoughts are as blank as the empty space I want them to occupy. Irony.
Nothing worth writing? No, there's plenty of things to bring God glory these days, new friends, the job, an up and coming, much needed fall break at a good friends house.
I think I'm caught in a loop these days which goes something like this...
Heavy burden....struggle.....take it off.....relax. Rise and repeat.
Can't seem to keep the weariness at bay for long, but this is more of what being an adult will be like than I've ever experienced. Working for rent/food. I mean, no, the classes will be ending soon, and the college era of my life will soon be done. No, not the burden, but definitely the NEED to work because of the NEED to pay bills. I don't have many, but they're enough to keep track of. I don't need/want anymore. Forget ever trying to own a new car, (as for a future mortgage, I think that one is avoidable as well, though I've not given much thought to it, I figure I do the whole apartment thing for a long long time).

Hmm...speaking of work, I must go, for today is a double and I'm not quite awake.

Farewell friends, may you find rest in the Lord this day and may He grant you peace as you go about your daily activities. May you find plenty of excuses to praise His name and so fewer to forget Him.

escape

...and we'll just choose a few hours and erase them from our schedules. They simply won't exist, sort of an anti-schedule. Your day will only have 22 hours instead of 24. 1pm, 2pm, 4pm, 5pm will be the accepted daytime rhythm. In that empty space, we'll create meaning and find existence we previously were unaware of. We'll escape into our own wardrobe for a few hours, and come back; maybe not wiser, but with the sweet taste of a laugh on our lips, and a twinkle in our eyes that speaks deeper to your soul than any word ever could.

Thoughts from an open window

The crickets are the most beautiful sound in the world at this very moment. They wash over me memories of home. The cool wind gently creeps its way into my living space, nudging and poking in the most comforting of ways. Welcome back, old friend. Soon you'll be joined by my thicker blankets. But I welcome you.

There is peace and solace in the silence of the night. Come with me to find it. At a moments notice, the silence will be momentarily deafening as our brains recall what it is again that we've been missing.

Close your eyes. Breathe deep. Rest.

Dealing

We all have those days, and it sucks when you have them. And when you see someone else have them, it's so easy to say "shake it off" because at that moment, it's what you would do. You're not having a bad day. A roommate just had his $700 bike stolen from the driveway today. Bike lock was cut clean in half. Man, that sucks. And...I almost feel guilty for having a good day. I bought a $50 ring from Wal-Mart to cover up the tattoo on my finger at work. The guy I'm training with informed me he had a spare ring I could borrow/have (not sure on that). So I tried returning it two days ago and they wouldn't let me because of a small technicality. And sometimes I go with the flow a little too much. I understood the technicality, and I walked away, but then I thought "That's $50 I'll never see again spent on something I am not going to use". So I went back today and successfully returned it.
Life throws you curves. And let me tell you this, it is not because you're a bad person, it is not because God is "punishing" you. Bad things happen to good people, bad things happen to bad people, good things happen to good people, good things happen to bad people. That's just the way it is. But you have to trust that no matter where you fall in that spectrum, God is still there and is still in control. It may not seem like it on days when you get your bike stolen, but He is.

No title

And yet again, I'll start with the cliche line "So, it's been a while since I last updated". Once I was writing in this thing almost on a daily basis, maybe bi-daily or tri-daily, but either way there was consistency.
I'm now living off of Edison in Waterford Glen. I just got back from playing with the neighborhood kids. There are like 10 of them. It's sort of ridiculous but in the best possible way. They come to the door all the time wanting us to play or to borrow the longboards. Cracks me up.
It's an insanely big blessing whenever I get to play with kids. I can hardly remember being one myself, I mean I wasn't just born with this beard, but it was a long time ago.
And I'm sick these days. Tomorrow I'm going to the school doctor to see what's going on. I just hope it has nothing to do with my tonsils. That would not be good.
My voice is pretty much shot at this point. Go figure. I scream and scream at camp trying to lose it, and now i get sick and completely lose it.
I don't write on this as much as I would like but I'm still glad I have it so I can read what other people write and be incredibly blessed by it.

Are we this serious???

"Christ's call is to save the lost, not the stiff-necked; He came not to call scoffers but sinners to repentance; not to build and furnish comfortable chapels, churches, and cathedrals at home in which to rock Christian professors to sleep by means of clever essays, stereotyped prayers, and artistic musical performances, but to capture men from the devil's clutches and the very jaws of Hell. This can be accomplished only by a red-hot, unconventional, unfettered devotion, in the power of the Holy Spirit, to the Lord Jesus Christ."
C.T Studd

"When we are in hand-to-hand conflict with the world, the flesh, and the devil himself, neat little Biblical confectionery is like shooting lions with a pea-shooter; God needs a man who will let go and deliver blows right and left as hard as he can hit, in the power of the Holy Ghost. Nothing but forked-lightning Christians will count."
C.T Studd