Thoughs on Thurday

Here is what is going through my mind on this rainy, dreary thursday.....

- Today is my last day in the office at ISBC. I will miss being here so much. I have already went into this in more detail in earlier post, but I really am going to miss working here


- I always think it is interesting to see how police men drive. When you see one, you put on the brakes (even if you are already going the speed limit). But when they are just out driving, they fly. It seems like they need to pull themself over or something. I saw one this morning on the way to work going about 60 in a 35. If that had been me going that fast, they would have turned the car around and pulled me over. It just does not seem like they are setting a very good example by abusing the law that they are trying to enforce......... just a thought


- I tried the McDonald's southern chicken sadwich the other day. It was not as good a the ever-famous Chick-fil-a, but it was still one of the better items on the menu. The biggest difference, in my opinion, was the batter they used. It was just a little to much. That is what makes Chick-fil-a great, they do not use to much batter, so you can really taste the flavor. But I enjoyed the sadwich, and I will probably get it again.


- I have been watching the new John Mayer DVD...... and it is amazing. If you are a Mayer fan, "Where the Light is" is a must see. It is like 3 concerts in one. He does an acoustic set, Trio set, and a set with his full band. There are also some nice behind the scenes footage and goodies. The video and audio quality are amazing (I would love to see the BlueRay version..). All 3 personalities of Mayer are unique and entertaining. I was just continually impressed by his guitar skills and musical ability.


- I am tired of the rain... and the heat. I know that in a few weeks I will be missing the heat here... because it will be MUCH HOTTER is Greenville, but I am ready for a little cooler weather. I love it when it is about 70. That is prime time weather.


- Kami and I saw "Step Brothers" the other night. and. we. laughed..... the whole time. It was not a "family- friendly" movies, but you just can not help but laugh when Will Ferrill and John C. Reily are together. It may even have been as good as Anchorman.... and that means it is good.


- My back has cuts on it from the Water slide last night. Tiger and I built a massive hillbilly waterslide behind the church. We had 75 feet of tarp down a very steep hill. The students seemed to love it.. my battle scars look like nothing compared to some of the high school guys. One made it his goal to get as much of a running start as he could and tried to slide into the church (which was about 25 more feet away). He came pretty close, I think he made it to about 5 feel away (meaning that he slid 20 feet in the grass... he was a little red to say the least)


-I want to see "The Dark Knight" again....


- I hit a squirrel last week while I was biking. I was getting onto the path, and as I was, the squirrel just jumped in front of me. I felt it on my tire before I saw it. It was gross, and sad. I really did it in...... it was gone on the spot. My condolenses to the Brown Squirrel family....

ok... that is enough thoughts for one day

Summer in review...

WHAT!

I can't believe that it is time for this blog post; I remember writing the one about finishing my freshman year like it was yesterday, and now it is time to sum up my summer in a few short paragraphs.

This has been a summer unlike any other. It has been great, fast, strange, and new all at the same time. Here we go......

- Job- This summer I have been working at ISBC as Tiger's intern. I have had such a great experience and learned so much. I have helped plan a mission trip to PA, I have done all sorts of office things, and I was even able to do a 3-week series that I wrote for the students on Wednesday nights. You can go to classes in school and read about ministry in books, but there is nothing more helpful and meaningful than actually getting involved. Tiger has been such a great mentor and friend this summer. It is amazing how all of this came together, but I am so glad that it did. This has been a great experience and a nice transition from being in the youth group to having leadership with them. The students at ISBC are awesome, they have made this job wonderful (so if any students at ISBC are reading this..... you all are a blessing and such a source of encouragement to me)

-Home- Living at home has been different this summer, not a bad different, just different. I remember when I was leaving for college, my Grandfather told me that things would never be the same when I came home.... and he was right. I felt a little bit like a guest the first few weeks of summer. My family had a routine that they had been doing without me for a while, so I just tagged along. Even though I have been living in the same room since I was in the 3rd grade, it feels different. I missed my family while I was away, but it also made me appreciate them more. I am not saying that I love my family more while I was away, but it made me realize how much I loved them while I was away. Things will never be the way they were, and I have a feeling that next summer will be even more different than this one.

Biking- It seems that I have become obsessed with Biking. I used to ride some... but it had been a while. When we purchased another car this summer, we got one with a hitch for our bike rack and sailboat. The day after we got the car, I started riding. I would ride a few miles a day and then go to work. Then I really started to enjoy it. I purchased a bike for myself to take back to school with me. It is a trek 930 singletrack, and I love it. I have been riding 10+ miles a day before work. We (my dad, brother, and myself) have also been getting into mountain biking. Now I love just riding, it is great exercise and gives off some nice endorphins... but mountain biking is an adrenaline rush like no other. There are so great trails behind the park, thing like "Boneyard", "Darwins' revenge", and "zipline". I think you get the picture. These trails are amazing!!! If you are looking for an extremely fun and challenging ride, you need to give mountain biking a try. (just be sure to bring LOTS of water and towels to dry off when you are done).

Random thoughts about summer-
I am really going to miss playing in the praise band. I have been playing with them for a few years, so it is sad to have to leave them and go back to school.
I am going to miss all the space I have at home to put my stuff in. I now have to move back into a small little hole called a dorm and try to cram all of my belongings in a small space...
I am also going to miss being able just to sit and watch movies with Kami. There is really no where at school that we can just sit and watch a move; I am really going to miss that
I am going to miss our pool. They have one at school, but they close it every year after the summer is over... go figure.
leisure reading- I am really going to miss being able to read what I want, when I want. I love school and learning, but I also really like being able to read books that I chose to read.



Ok that is enough for one post. There will be more goodies later....

I remember when...

I could get wifi for free at bookstores, coffee shops, hotels, and fast food joints. Now it seems that most of these places require you to pay for internet. AT&T seems to have taken over the market and requires you to pay to use their service. You can get internet for 2 hours at Barnes and Noble for $3.99.... that is crazy. The story seems to be the same everywhere. I miss the good old days when I could walk into Starbucks, crack open my macbook, and surf away; those days seem to be long gone.
Even the hotel that we are staying at requires you to pay to use (I am borrowing internet from the hotel beside us to write this blog....). I feel like a senior citizen complaining about the "old days", but I do miss the free wifi...

We are in Chattanooga this weekend for a little last minute vacation. We had a great dinner at The Macaroni Grill; tomorrow we are going to the aquarium. I have heard that there is a huge bicycle store, so I may have to go check that out as well.


-This is a picture from a free-standing Krystal.... I just thought that it was hilarious, and a little gross.

Hope you this pic lightens up your day..... It was lighting up the night scene of Chattanooga

A great night for "The Dark Knight"

WOW!!!!!

What an amazing movie.

If you have not seen "The Dark Knight"....... get off the computer and go see it now (then you can come back later and read more of my blog entries)

On Saturday, Kami and I made the trip down to K-town (Knoxville, TN) to see the movie in an IMAX theater. It was a very new theater complete with the IMAX screen and a 12,000 watt sound system. The show was sold out (so were all the other shows previous... it was crazy). We got there just in time to get a seat; we had to sit toward the front, but it did not matter. The screen was so big that you were looking all over the screen the whole time.

I knew this was going to be a great experience as soon as the movie started The opening scene was just a camera moving over the city.As the camera moved there was a "ohhhhhhh" that came across the audience. After that, the movie took off and did not stop till the credits. Everyone seemed to love it. A lady beside me said that her friend had seen it the night before and would not even take her children to the bathroom... You know you are at an amazing movie when mothers make their children go to the bathroom alone while they watch the movie.

Batman has done extremely well in the box office, beating "Spiderman 3" for the top spot. I am so glad

- Spiderman 3= big letdown.... worst one of the 3
- Dark Knight= just as great as the hype. This one deserves the spot of #1. I have a feeling that this one is going to hold for quite a while.

I would go back to the IMAX just to see it again.... it was well worth the trip to Knoxville

stay tuned.... more goodies are on the way

Why do I blog??

This is a question that I have been asking myself over the last few weeks....
I like blogging because of the way I can put out information in a stylish way (I think it looks pretty good...), but I am trying to get down to the core reason why I spend all this time typing and clicking on my computer, tracking feeds, and looking at other blogs. Blogging has become quite a phenomenon that attracts a wide array of an audience.

But why do I want to do this?? Why do I spend all this time blogging when I could be doing something else? (like homework...).

I think that in the end, I just want my blog to encourage and inspire someone out there in the internet world. I have no idea who reads my post and views my blog, but I hope and pray that someone can be impacted through my sharing. I like updating my backgrounds and writing about random things and movies and such. But in the end, I just want to encourage people where they are an uplift the name of Jesus.

I hope you are encouraged, blessed, amused, or at least not bored out of your mind by what you read...

Some interesting quotes...

Here are some quotes that are in my mind at this time.

"To suppose that whatever God requireth of us that we have power of
ourselves to do, is to make the cross and grace of Jesus Christ of none
effect."
-John Owen

Wow.... This one gets me every time I read it. I can think of so many times in my life where I feel like I have to do it all on my own, that I have to be good enough by myself. When God first called me into ministry, I struggled with the idea because I thought that I could never be as good of a preacher as this person or as good a speaker as this person. I thought I could never be to that persons level of musical ability or be able to lead worship like Lincoln Brewster. But God has not called me to be them; God has called me to be me. My purpose is to let God use me and my gifts for His glory, not to become just like someone else. This is still something that I have not mastered; many times I find myself doubting God's call in my life because I feel inadequate for whatever reason. When I am feeling this way, I am reminded of this quote. I am not called to do it in my own power; I am just required to be faithful to where God leads me and allow Him to work in my life.

"Faithless is he that says farewell when the road darkens"
-JRR Tolkien

I love Tolkien and all of his works. He is just such a grand storyteller, and he puts things in a new light. I really like people that can take something that you have heard for years and put it in a way that makes you say, "Oh, I get it now."
So many people want to jump boat on their faith as soon as the water gets a little choppy. But I would say if you polled people and asked them if they would trade in the dark and rough times, they would say NO. It is in those times that we cannot do it alone that God comes in and shapes us and takes care of us. Just like the disciples in the boat during the storm. Jesus was calm when there were storms all around; he took care of them, and He will take care of us.

" Thats the thing about people knowing anything about you before you meet them, is that you have to work just to get people back to knowing nothing about you"
-John Mayer

OK, I know that this is not on the same level as the last 2, but I think there are still some good things here. We live in a world where everything is at our fingertips; you really can find out anything about people without ever meeting them. I have done it many times. I will hear someone talking about a person and go look them up on the web. You can read my blog and know all about me.. but not know me as a person (I am not saying you should not read my blog... it is here for people to read). There is just so much out there to get in the way of who I really am; I hope that when all the "stuff" is stripped away you can just see my love and passion for Jesus. That is my desire. Everything else about me is fine and good, but I would rather you remember nothing about me and be pointed to Jesus than to know everything about my life.

I just want to be open to whatever God leads me to do. I can't say that I always do that, but that is the goal.

stay tuned.....I am feeling some good deep posts coming up soon.

Randomness.... The next level

I have done a few random blogs over the last month or so and have found it to be a very effective was for me to clear my head (it gets cluttered sometimes). This one may be a little long, but I hope you can find something in here that interests you. Here goes something


-I seem to have become somewhat obsessed with Biking. Over the last 3 weeks or so I have been biking every morning or evening (sometimes both). I have really come to enjoy it; I even like getting up an hour earlier just so I can ride before work at the park. I have spent soooo many hour on the web looking for a bike, and I finally found one. I found a Trek 930 at a bike shop in Piney Flats. I think it was made in 1994, but it is in great shape. I even rode 9 miles on it this morning, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I also like the fact that I am losing a little weight (I seemed to have gained a little more than an education last semester...). My clothes are fitting better, I feel better all over, and it is fun.

- Wednesday was the first night of my new series call "The Throwdown". I think it went pretty well. I was very nervous about it. I have the utmost respect for all you student ministers out there who are able to connect with and impact you students. It may be one of the most difficult jobs. I would have been so much more comfortable talking to a huge room full of adults then to share with students. I love students (I am one), but I think that students may be the most difficult group to speak to. BUT, they are also some of the best people in the world, so there is some give and take.

- Today is Kami's Birthday. I am taking her out for a really nice dinner (I even made reservations and everything). It is just going to be a really relaxed and sweet night. I also bought her a pretty nice gift, which I hope she really like. I better not say any more about tonight... she may read this today.

- It is crazy to think that I will be back at school less than a month from now. It just feels like summer started and now it is almost over. I am excited about being back in Greenville (it is such a neat place), and I am excited about seeing everyone. But I am not as excited about going to class. Last year I was excited about class. It was something new and different. But this year, not so much. I will like it once I get back into it, but the first few weeks are always difficult.

- I am going to miss interning at ISBC. I have had such a great experience this summer. I have learned so much and feel like I have so much more experience for the year to come.

- I am still working on Photoshop and all the other programs in the Creative Suite. I really love working on my computer, and I have spent hours and hours on Photoshop. I am doing much better than when I statred, but I still do not know all the tricks and features. I made a graphic for my series on Wed. nights, and I will be playing with some other ideas that I have for graphics. If anyone out there is a graphic pro and has some tips... I would love to hear them.

- I am excited about the early service on Sunday. It is going to be a little different than usual. We are doing a semi-acoustic set complete with a djembe, synth, acoustic bass and guitar, and I am playing my Telecaster. It is going to be great musical fusion.

If you made it all this way, I salute you for your commitment to reading about my life.
There are more good things to come....

Murphy's Law in action

Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong...

That is what Murphy said a long time ago, and it was true on Thursday at the lake. What started out to be a nice relaxing day at the lake for some pre-4th fun turned into one of the most interesting sailing trips yet.

We just got a new (to us) SUV. We have been without a hitch for over a year, which means that our smaller sailboat has just been sitting in the backyard. We all thought that it would be a great time to take the Holder (this is the smaller boat) to South Holston lake where our larger sailboat is docked and sail them both.

Everything seemed to be going fine. We got the boat in the water without a problem and waited for the other boat to come over from the dock to bring us some life jackets. After getting those, we both head out onto the water. We motor out a good way and put up the sails..... and there is virtually no wind. I am to the point of wanting to throw things because there was so much wind while we were sitting at the dock and now it was gone (or so I thought...)

Since the wind was so low, we decided to go up the lake a little way to the largest part. Sometimes the wind is better there. Once we get to the open part of the lake, the wind is ripping. I have never seen this kind of wind on South Holston before. David and I did all we could just to keep the boat from tipping over. There were at least two times when we were just a foot or two from flipping the boat. It was so windy, we took the jib sail (the small sail in the front down) and were still flinging through the water. It gets so bad that we decide just to meet up with everyone else and beach the boat... They were swimming in the lake in a little cove area.

I get to the cove and swim around and cool off for a while (I had worked up quite a sweat at this point..)
After swimming for a few minutes, my dad wants to go out with me in the Holder. I am up to face the water again, and I am feeling confident at this point.... but this is where everything goes crazy.

We motor back out onto the middle of the water and put up the sail. As we are putting up the sail, the boom (which is a metal bar the runs on the bottom of the sail) comes around and smacks me in the head. I had already been hit by the boom earlier that day, but this one was right on my forehead. I still have a knot and it still hurts.. and this was 4 days ago. Everything seemed to be going fine after that when disaster struck. We were sailing along and all of the sudden the mast (the 20 foot metal pole that holds the sail) begins to fall... ON ME!!! It is almost like slow motion; I am seeing this pole coming toward me and I move about one foot to the left, which was just enough for it to miss my head. It hit my shoulder and my arm (which is also really sore..). By this time our sails are in the water, and all of our rigging is down. We hurry to get it all back in the boat and motor back to the shore where the other boat is tied up. Now instead of a sailboat, we have a flat boat.

I am still very sore from my independence day battle with the lake. I have never had so many things go wrong on one sailing trip. It was really like everything went out at the same time. I am a little sore, but at least there is a good story as to why my arm is bruised and knotted as well as having an enlarged forehead.

Murphy may be long gone... but his laws keeps on going and going.

This was a sailing day that I will never forget.

The Incredible...... Wall-E

This past week I went to the movies twice (that does not happen to often that I go 2 times in a span of a few days).

Thursday night, Kami and I went with some of our friends to see the midnight showing of Wall-E. There were quite a few people there, even some smaller kids. I was impressed, because I was tired by the time the movie started; so props to all those kids who stayed up way past their bed time and made it through the movie.      

The movie was really good; which was very impressive considering that there was a minimal amount of actual conversation with words during the film. The light-hearted movie was extremely well done (but all the pixar movies seem to be... and this one was no exception). Wall-E was a great movie for kids and adults. There was a lot of robot humor that everyone will enjoy, and some interesting questions that were posed throughout the movie. One was about taking care of the earth.... Now don't get me wrong, I am by no means any kind of All Gore, turning green person. But the movie did have a way of pointing out that we need to take care of our earth, so we do not have to take a 5 year space cruise while robots fix our cities and end up staying for 700 years. God has given us the duty of taking care of the earth; God told Adam to take care of the earth. I  don't think we should stop driving cars or anything like that. But we do need to take care of what we have. 

On Saturday, I went with my family to see "The Hulk", which was also very good. I was a little skeptical since they made one a few years ago that was a bust... but this one was good. There was a good mix of cgi animation and real-time camera work. The story line was compelling, and it left the door wide open for a sequel/ epic merge with other characters in the marvel line.  

Both movies were great in their own way, very different,but both were worth the trip. So take a seat in your favorite movie theatre with some popcorn and a big drink and enjoy a good movie.