Monday, October 20, 2008

Yes... I am one woolly looking booger... In a previous post I talked about my beard and how I started growing it to make girls not find me attractive. I guess I thought that by having a beard that it would remove the temptations I was feeling in regard to the opposite sex... Boy was I wrong... It is interesting how these things work! I grow a beard to try and help alleviate temptation and the devil just pours it on thicker than ever!

It's interesting that in my small group we've been studying in James. James chapter 1 talks about temptations and trials and the difference between the two and how to deal with each of them. Verses 13-15 talk about being tempted and in the ESV translation read:

13Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am being tempted by God," for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. 14But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. 15Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.

The interesting thing about these verses is even after relentlessly studying them in preparing for small group, I still almost typed, "it's funny how God works," but it isn't God at all... No temptation comes from God, but from ones own evil desires... I totally agree with this assessment! We have to abort the desire at conception instead of letting it develop into sin! This is easier said than done, but it is completely impossible without a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and a community of believers to help with accountability!

I guess my prayer is that everyone who reads this will continue to develop their relationship with Christ and pursue community, as it is the most important step in our Christian lives after prayer and Bible study!

Peace and love,
Derek

Monday, October 6, 2008

Show me the money!!!!


I was reading the story in Exodus about when God rained down manna from Heaven for the Israelites to eat. Well manna as translated in the New International Version is bread. Well to paraphrase, God provided bread for the Israelites to eat and told them not to take more than they needed to get through the day. God told Moses that He was testing them to make sure they fully trusted that He would provide enough food for them to survive and not starve.

Well to make a short story shorter, they hoarded more than they needed and God sent maggots to destroy it and made it rot and stink up their camps. I feel like it's no coincidence that money is now sometimes referred to as bread because it is very similar to Biblical manna in that people can't get enough of it and will always hoard much more than is needed.

Americans, and the West in general, have been hoarding resources for many years! Before that it was someone else... That is the cycle that history shows us. It doesn't matter how great the power when greed takes over the society falls.

I don't really have a point in this post I don't guess other than to point out that greed is bad and that everyone should consider how much they really need because there are a myriad of awesome causes out there that would appreciate your extras and would put them to good use. (one of which is Nuru International)

Anyway, keep living life and loving Jesus!

Derek

Friday, October 3, 2008

Relief!!!!


I have finally decided what the next step is for me after graduation. I'm not going to go into much detail at this point because I intend to spend mucho time in prayer about it before I tell the world! It does involve a pretty radical lifestyle change that will not be comfortable...

I was looking at my past two posts and I realized that I was either sick, tired, or both when I wrote them. So I figured I'd take a happy picture and display it for all to see. I'm not asleep on my book or nastily sick looking, but I am smiling!

I've been struggling with what the next step in my life would be... Every thing I came up with left me sour taste in my mouth. The decision I came to this morning is the first future plan that I've come up with that leads me to something other than mediocrity. We aren't called, as Christians, to live lives of mediocrity... We are called to follow the example that Christ set while here on Earth, and His life was far from mediocre... I mean when his friends left him standing on the sea shore, instead of doing what we would do and yell or swim after them, he just hopped on the water and walked out to them!!! And when he wanted to heal a blind man he didn't lay hands on him and pray for him, he hocked up a holy loogy(to borrow from Shane Claiborne) and mixed it with dirt and rubbed it on his eyes... Maybe I'm wrong but that doesn't sound mediocre to me...

I'm making a committment to live for Christ no matter the cost and where ever that leads me I will follow!

Be blessed,
D-Wreckasourus (thats my rapper name)