Another Ragamuffin...Another Blog...

Killa - Lecrae

2011-01-29T06:14:00.001-08:00

Uh, I know it’s going to kill me but I just can’t let it go And the taste so appealing got a grip upon my soul These honey dip lies mesmerize me Pride’s got its crooked fingers twisted all inside in me Fools walk the path I’m on, never to be seen again Sipping on seduction while we eating on some secret sin (Not a lot of love and mercy) says the whisper in my ear And I know I should be over this, but I ain’t seeing clear And I aint leaving here, unless somebody save me Walking to my grave letting evilness enslave me Evil looks so lovely covered in her lace of lies And the silky smooth seduction just manipulates my mind Her fabrical fabrication is fueling my fascination While I’m intoxicated she starts her assassination I’m losing all my honor and my years to the merciless Giving all my life away but I’m just so immersed in this (killa) Hook: Baby this is innocent (Killa) it won’t even hurt a little bit (Killa) I’m only here for your benefit (killa) I’m your every wish (Killa) Come on and let me in (killa), baby this is innocent (Killa) And it won’t even hurt a little bit (Killa) Close your eyes and let’s get lost tonight (Killa) Would it be alright? You’ll see (killa) Her feet go down to DEATH, so don’t let her consume you Even though her heart is black, her exterior’s beautiful She’ll take your life away, strip away your joy Pretends that she gon build you up but she’s just gon destroy you My friends fell low, when they was so high Got me running scared of myself, no lie …

What a Lady Wants(What You Need to be if You Have One)

2011-01-21T09:14:00.000-08:00

To be called beautiful instead of 'hot'.

To treat her like a priceless vase instead of a throw away Thermos.

To call her back when she hangs up on you.

To find out what's wrong even when she says 'nothing'.

To stay awake just to watch her sleep.

To put your head on her chest just to feel her heartbeat.

To think and say she is beautiful whether she is in sweats and a T-shirt or lingerie.

To chase her when she runs.

To catch her when she falls.

To wipe the tears away when she cries.

To show her off to the world and say "she is the one".

To discover new things about her despite the time you've known her.

To be her best friend.

To be her place of safety.

To hold her in your arms and tell her that forever is not long enough.

Vacant Souls - Vacant Joy

2011-01-18T17:57:00.000-08:00

life
-
   an orchestrated chaotic blend
   of four chord strums
   in a smokey  filled bar

   set against a dozen
   broken down souls

   you can see in their face
   the hurt
   the pain
   the sorrow
   regrets

   of yesterday
   last week
   last year
   for some their whole life

   broken and tattered souls
   beaten down
   by the tsunami of life
   pain
   both given and received
   they wear on their faces

   sometimes escaping the sadness
   for a moment of joy
   quickly fading
   as the memory of yesterday
   comes rushing back

   where do they go from here
   where do they find
   something

   someone

   anything
   to lift them back up

   out of these ashes
   of a life
   burned down

   like an old condemned building
   vacant for years...

   ....not unlike their joy.

~raycarroll 2010

Sun Stand Still Review

2011-01-17T07:44:00.000-08:00

Based upon Joshua 10:13, Sun Stand Still by Steven Furtick is a book about audacious faith, about having a vision, about believing God for the impossible.

Let me go ahead and get the review over with and say that it's a must read, especially to start off 2011, but it's got to be much more than a book it's got to be a lifestyle, a mindset, or as he says in the book a 'movement' that sweeps this generation. I believe this movement is already sweeping our generation for I have seen so many posts and stories involving Sun Stand Still miracles. But before anything can become a 'movement' or you can be a part of a 'movement' you have to have that personal eye opening experience yourself, or that 'page 23' vision as he calls it in the book.

Our church started the Sun Stand Still series last week and within three days a baby that has been waiting 8 months for a heart transplant received it and is a living miracle of what can happen when God's people come together with the reality of His glory.

It's not about another book, it's not about another series, it is about BELIEVING in the All-Powerful All-Possible Never-Forsaking hand of the Almighty God that with a single word spoke the universe in existence. It's about letting the god that we have placed into our box and seeing the true God that can not be confined by any limitations.

I received a copy of this book by the publisher for this review.

For My Soulmate

2011-01-16T17:55:00.001-08:00

You are beautifully amazing, perfectly crafted, joyfully floating through every thought in my mind at this moment. You are the queen of my heart and the love of my life, the perfectly chosen soulmate brought together by the One we serve. Our divine path and story has yet to be fully written and though there may be times of fear, doubt, sadness and hurt, the One who wove us together will never unweave our story until He has decided to write that last sentence.

-raycarroll

The Undertakers Heart

2011-01-13T17:21:00.000-08:00

words cascading
  upon an already mountainous
pile of broken and bruised words
blood spilled syllables and vowels
  buried in a cemetery
of rotting corpses of broken promises.

the undertaker
i know too well
  he has seen my face here before

as he grimaces
to his delight my return
   he is pleased that the eventual hole he dug will soon be filled.

~raycarroll 2010

What I meant to say was....

2011-01-10T16:15:00.000-08:00

..something totally cool and relevant that would make you think, act and love.

..a divine thought inspired from above playing in your ears like a thousand angels singing while a golden harp is played in the distance.

..instantaneously rhythmic syllables cascading your cerebellum like a jazz street musician on 23rd and 7th.

..artistic divine influence of rgb's on a pixel canvas that can make you lol while showing much <3

but that's not what you heard at all was it?

~raycarroll

SoulPrint by @MarkBatterson Review

2011-01-09T14:20:00.000-08:00

It seems like in the last few years(to me anyways) that 'destiny' has become a hot topic among the Christian community. I personally think it's great, because when I was growing up as a young believer I always thought if I believed John 3:16 and told a few people about the 'Big Guy' upstairs that I was fulfilling my purpose.

SoulPrint accurately starts off with saying 'this is not a self-help book', a point that I love. I believe that somewhere along the line in the last few years we have shifted from His-story to our-story. What's in it for me? How can I become a better person so that I can feel better, get more money and even become famous in the process.

Mark starts off by describing how our memories work and how only a few of our experiences are ever remembered because they were barely felt. He gives some great psychology findings that I thought were extremely valuable and was very glad to see in a book like this. The brief class in 'Psych' 101 taught here by Mark really opened my eyes at how some of the experiences and memories I have, have literally 'defined' my soulprint today. But the best part of it, is that through this stewardship of 'memory management' I can redefine that soulprint to where it should be and inside of that I will find my destiny.

Overall this is not a 'lengthy' book, I read it in just a few days, and many could probably read it in a sitting. The key however is the substance and depth that I have found in this book. This is not a book that you can just read page to page and move on to the next, at least not for me.

I wanted to go through this book once but in the next few weeks I am really going to go back through each chapter and do some of my own soul searching. I was very glad to see discussion questions posted in the back of the book for yourself or a small group so that this can become much more than a 'feel good' book but something that requires you to dig deep and hopefully change yourself, or at least 'see' yourself more clearly.

I highly recommend this book as a book to start your new year off to a great start, a fresh perspective and hopefully to find your destiny in the process.

I received this book by WaterBrook Multnomah to review on this blog.

15 Albums That Impacted My Life

2011-01-08T06:39:00.001-08:00

1. Rick Springfield - Hard to Hold

2. Boston - Boston

3. Michael Jackson - Thriller

4. U2 - The Joshua Tree

5. DMB: Crash

6. Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin IV

7. Travis - The Man Who

8. Snow Patrol - Eyes Open

9. Matt Nathanson - Beneath These Fireworks

10. Matchbox 20 - Mad Season

11. DMB - Before These Crowded Streets

12. Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds - Live at Luther College

13. No Doubt - Tragic Kingdom

14. Johnny Cash - Complete Recordings

15: DC Talk - Jesus Freak

3 Ways to Make Guests Feel Welcome (If You are Mark Driscoll)

2011-01-07T17:50:00.000-08:00

I got inspired by the 'real' 6 Way to Make Guest Feel Welcome and it got me thinking about 6(Ok..could only come up with 3 at such short notice) ways that ONLY Mark Driscoll could make people welcome and pull it off coming across as a great guy. (If you are unaware of Pastor Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill check out the video of Matt Chandler coming across off as Mark Driscoll..Matt's the nicest guy in the world and I don't think he could even pull off a 'Driscoll').

1) Welcome the guy by asking if he is married to the lady that he drove to church in the same car with and when he finds out they are not but just 'living together' he then tells the lady to dump the guy and work on her relationship with God. After which they do exactly that, join the church, become small group leaders for singles, end up 'catching each other's eyes' again at a singles retreat and get married by Pastor Mark and end up having 16 children all of whom become missionaries.

2)The week after seeing very few people 'tithe'....he begins his new series 'People Who Don't Tithe are Complete Morons'. Which results in 1600 souls saved/rededicated to the Lord and an excess budget amount that allows Mars Hill to come out with their own clothing line..the first of which was 'classic Driscoll' torn jeans that say 'If You Don't Tithe You Are a Moron!' across them....(untold of Walmart/Target employees are rumored to have been slain in the spirit after it's arrival.)

3)Get up and say what church plants are legalists and which ones are the reverse....oh wait..that one is right above....I am SURE all of these have happened...I'll end here...BTW..I do LOVE Mark Driscoll and watch his podcasts every week...he has stepped on my toes more than once...but he speaks the truth.

YouTube #Fail...but in SUCH a Funny Way...Single Again...Because Luv is a Verb!

2011-01-06T19:20:00.000-08:00

So on my youtube page...you know how there are 'recommendations' based upon your previous videos you've watched?!?

So I see one...that say's "since you watched DC Talk - Luv is a Verb - We think you'll enjoy this..

just had me rolling...and had to bring this up from the ashes just for this...

Don't think Toby, Kevin and Max quite had this in mind....

A Prayer For God's Will

2010-07-01T07:49:00.000-07:00

Father,
I thank you that you are instructing and teaching me in the way I should go. I am looking to you for council as your eye is upon me.

Just as a Shepard calls his sheep and they recognize his voice so I will recognize your voice by becoming familiar with it. You lead me in the paths of righteousness for Your names sake.

I thank you that my path is growing brighter and brighter everyday and I am glowing with light each and every day. As I follow You, Lord, as I sing your praises with my voice, your purpose for my life is becoming clearer each day.

I thank you for your wisdom that is found in You. Confusion is not part of my life. I am not confused about my future or about Your will for my life. I trust in You in all of my ways and believe that you are directing my path. As I trust in you completely You will show me the path for my life.

Amen.

The Closeness of Death - (Poetry Post)

2010-06-23T12:09:00.000-07:00

The closeness of death
is but a breath
a second in time
I am next in line
For the greatest journey to come

A brief mist
but a vapor
an eternal longing
of that which is to come
Moments unwind memories left undone

All my thoughts of urgency
Those temporary things I couldn't put away

castles in the sand
waves now crashing
taking away

all that's left
that which was not built
upon the solid rock
by which I stand

dust to dust
ash to ash

We all fall down

@raycarroll

We Walk This Road by @rrtfb Album Review

2010-06-22T09:49:00.000-07:00

When I hit play what began to circulate through my headphones gave me the feeling of what young Charlie must have felt the moment he began to walk through Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory.

Make no mistake about it...these are not like the little Oompa Loompa's and their clever little tunes about the effects of too much television or the rotten behavior of spoiled brats who chew bubble gum all day and night.

This is some seriously good music.

I've been a RRTFB fan since the beginning of time...well, at least since I saw them open for DMB years back.

This album doesn't disappoint and I might even go on record saying this is their best album to date.

First off, they chose none other than T-Bone Burnett and all of his genius that he brings to the already talented Family lineup.

Yes...what can I say...this is a must have for any hippie, jam band fan, rocker, soulster, r&b, gospel, blues or even if you do a little hoedown in the barn every Saturday night...I am pretty sure this won't disappoint.

If it does...you probably need to stop reading me and go over to Ryan Seacrest for all of your music needs.

We Walk This Road by Robert Randolph and the Family Band (Audio CD - June 21, 2010)

Buy new: ~~$13.99~~ $11.99

19 new from $8.21

3 used from $8.49

Download MP3 Album: $8.99

Kickin the Bucket - First Day of Summer...Let's Get This Started!!

2010-06-21T12:02:00.000-07:00

“Life is too short not to make the best and the most of everything that comes your way everyday.”
Sasha Azevedo

Summer Bucket List 2010

1) Visit a cemetery.

2) Write Psalms.

3) Read a classic.

4) Read a biography/autobiography.

5) Record my life story.

6) At least once a week try a new fruit/vegetable/dish/etc....

7) Select a life verse.

8) Write thank you notes to some of the people in my life who I've failed to thank enough.

9) Learn a new (technical) skill.

10) Build a doghouse.

I'll post updates during the summer as well as expand on any of these once I start them.

Looking forward to this.

Life is too short, can't wait to see all these items checked off come the end of summer.

Kickin the Bucket - Read a Classic and Read a Biography (What Do You Recommend?)

2010-06-18T08:25:00.000-07:00

Adding two more items to this bucket list today.

I want to read a classic book and read a biography.

I love to read and admittedly my reading consist of usually the norm, faith-based non-fiction books, the Bible and technology books/manuals(exciting right?!).

When was the last time I read a classic novel? Probably High School....if you consider Cliff Notes actually reading the book!

I am open. I will ponder to see which ones I should choose.

Any suggestions?

Kickin the Bucket - Write a Book of Psalms

2010-06-17T06:41:00.000-07:00

A psalm is a poetic hymn addressed to the Giver of Life.

I've got a box of songs of written through the years, a lot of poetry and writings in general ad nauseam.

But I've never really set out to write 'Psalms' in and of themselves.

Just praises, prayers and cry's out to the Maker.

Sounds like another item on this summers bucket list.

Teach Me To Number My Days....

2010-06-16T11:24:00.000-07:00

Teach me to number my days

and count every moment,

before it slips away

take in all the colors
before they fade to gray

slow down

before today becomes our yesterday

slow down

before you turn around and its too late

Kickin the Bucket - Visit a Cemetery

2010-06-16T06:07:00.000-07:00

People get freaked out at cemetery's.

They always remind me of how short this vapor of a life really is.

You see every age represented.

Rich, poor, young and old. CEO's and janitors.

Those who followed their dreams and those who never got to that first step in the pursuit.

I often think of how many dreams, unwritten novels, unsung songs, untold 'I love you' are now six feet underground.

This is on my summer bucket list. More than likely I will visit many throughout this summer to keep myself in check. To realize that at any moment that I could be six feet under as well. Making these experiences on this list even more important than ever.

I don't believe that the six feet destination is my final stop, however it is the end of living in this flesh and blood, so time is short and I've got to run this race before that final breath is exhaled.

Old grave stones by Petr Kratochvil

Join Me in Kicking the Bucket This Summer!

2010-06-15T09:09:00.000-07:00

The summer bucket list that is!

Got plans for this summer?

Don't get caught up in the same old routine.

Put together a list of items that you weren't planning on doing and blog/twitter/facebook/snail mail/graffiti it across your least favorite family members walls(ok, maybe not that).

I am putting a list together of probably about 10 or so items that are pretty spontaneous that I just want to do this summer.

Remember back in school when you would have to write that infamous 'What I Did During Summer' paper? Weren't you always bummed when you realized you didn't do anything all that exciting?

The 21st will be the first day of summer and then you will have 3 months or so to reach those goals.

Want to sit down and write a childrens book about a carrot that gets a one way ticket to New York?

Write it!

Want to get that one way ticket to New York?

Buy it and go!

Want to waste time sitting on the couch watching television and eating cheesy poofs?

Go find another blog!! :)

So Long Status Quo, I Think I Just Let Go..

2010-06-11T07:24:00.000-07:00

Certain songs have certain meanings in your life.

It's funny how just a few notes can take you back into time and almost feel as if you are experiencing those same feelings.

Some songs have served as reminders for me, monuments, altars almost.

Not many of us are in the habit of building altars in these days.

Mark Batterson did a great message on altars back on 11/22/09 you can download the video on Itunes here.

Altars remind us of where we have been and where we are going. Altars remind us of who we are and who God is. Many of us wander through life because we don't have altars that serve as spiritual milestones in our life.

You don't have to go climb a mountain and build a stone altar. It can be a shelf that has some items that remind you of where you have been and where you are heading. It can be a photo album or some photo's you have hanging in your office. Athletes probably have the best concept of this by displaying their trophies on display.

That is exactly what an altar is, a trophy display. We can't forget what God has done in our lives and where He has brought us.

For me a lot of times I can use songs in such a way.

I remember five years ago my company got bought out and we were forced to do some 'transitions' our "dream house" that we were having built we had to say goodbye to. We ended up giving away everything we had(all except which would fit in a van...that also contained four children...so it wasn't too much that would fit). We had no idea where we were going(a journey that would take us to mid America) or what the future was going to hold(a lot of ups and downs). But I will never forget that as we were crossing state lines the song "Brave" by Nichole Nordeman came on...and it was a perfect time to just listen to the voice of God speak.

"So long status quo, I think I just let go..you make me want to be brave."

I never want to lose that reckless abandon of faith. I never want to start to feel 'comfortable' just living in the status quo. There is so much danger living in the comfort zone. We have to step out, step out and be brave.

Sign - No jumping off bridge by Andrew Schmidt

Confessions of a Mundane Existence After Staring at the Face of Death

2010-06-10T11:21:00.000-07:00

reading my daily dose of Reflections for Ragamuffins from the Writings of Brennan Manning and looking at yesterdays...(since i'm always behind).

ever have a near death experience??

you are driving down the road...minding your own business....mind wandering a million places...bills..problems...work....and then an 18 wheeler cuts you off and begins swurving back and forth about to tip over and there is nothing you can do....your heart stops.....suddenly your safe again.....you pull over and can actually see....you can breathe, your eyes are opened like never before...you see the beauty in that blade of grass next to an old beer can that someone threw out the window in a drunken stupor..you see the sky....never so blue...never so beautiful....you breathe the air....life....life is all around you...smiling faces...loving relationships....

...but then time slowly ticks away....hours become minutes become days become years....suddenly those eyes can't see as well as they could after that moment...life is grey....mundane...used...recycled.....

if only we could live every second of our life as those few seconds of 'total awareness'....to live the way we were meant...to experience peace, love, joy endlessly without feeling torn, beaten and worn.....without feeling jealousy, hatred, resentment or anger....peace, love and joy....

i wish i could grab those seconds again.....i would never let them go........

Scenic Road by Shari Weinsheimer

Best Opening Track on an Album??

2010-06-08T08:48:00.000-07:00

More Than a Feeling by Boston off self-titled album.

I don't want to get all 'Rob Gordon' on you, but that's my thought?

How about yours?

What Control's Your Thoughts Controls Your Life

2010-06-07T14:02:00.000-07:00

'Cause what consumes your thoughts controls your life ~creed

So the question today is is what consumes your thoughts?
Money?
Lust?
Power?
A person?
God?

When you bow down before that thing you serve, are you going to get what you deserve?

You're born. You suffer. You die. Fortunately, there's a loophole. - 30 Great Quotes

2010-06-03T06:28:00.000-07:00

You're born. You suffer. You die. Fortunately, there's a loophole.

Billy Graham

Cloudscape by Andrew Schmidt

"If we maintain the open-mindedness of children, we challenge fixed ideas and established structures, including our own. We listen to people in other denominations and religions. We don't find demons in those with whom we disagree. We don't cozy up to people who mouth our jargon. If we are open, we rarely resort to either-or: either creation or evolution, liberty or law, sacred or secular, Beethoven or Madonna. We focus on both-and, fully aware that God's truth cannot be imprisoned in a small definition. "

— Brennan Manning

“Beware of no man more than of yourself; we carry our worst enemies within us.”
Charles H. Spurgeon

Nothing that you have not given away will ever be really yours.

C. S. Lewis

Live as though Christ died yesterday, rose from the grave today, and is coming back tomorrow.

Theodore Epp

I believe in the sun even if it isn't shining. I believe in love even when I am alone. I believe in God even when He is silent.

Unknown
Lonely by Bobby Mikul

Any fool can count the seeds in an apple. Only God can count all the apples in one seed.

Robert H. Schuller

"It occurs to me it is not so much the aim of the devil to lure me with evil as it is to preoccupy me with the meaningless. "

— Donald Miller

God will not be behind-hand in love to us: for our drop, we shall receive an ocean.
—Thomas Watson

"No, life cannot be understood flat on a page. It has to be lived; a person has to get out of his head, has to fall in love, has to memorize poems, has to jump off bridges into rivers, has to stand in an empty desert and whisper sonnets under his breath... We get one story, you and I, and one story alone. God has established the elements, the setting and the climax and resolution. It would be a crime not to venture out, wouldn't it?" -Donald Miller,Through Painted Deserts"

— Donald Miller

Afflictions are light when compared with what we really deserve. They are light when compared with the sufferings of the Lord Jesus. But perhaps their real lightness is best seen by comparing them with the weight of glory which is awaiting us.
—Arthur W. Pink

"I believe the greatest trick of the devil is not to get us into some sort of evil but rather have us wasting time. This is why the devil tries so hard to get Christians to be religious. If he can sink a man's mind into habit, he will prevent his heart from engaging God. I was into habit."

— Donald Miller
"God wants you to get where God wants you to go more than you want to get where God wants you to go."
— Mark Batterson (In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day: How to Survive and Thrive When Opportunity Roars)

"I want to keep walking away from the person I was a moment ago, because a mind was made fo figure things out, not to read the same page recurrently."

— Donald Miller (Through Painted Deserts: Light, God, and Beauty on the Open Road)

"If you're bored, one thing is for sure: You're not following in the footsteps of Christ."

— Mark Batterson (In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day: How to Survive and Thrive When Opportunity Roars)

"I don't wonder anymore what I'll tell God when I go to heaven when we sit in the chairs under the tree, outside the city........I'll tell these things to God, and he'll laugh, I think and he'll remind me of the parts I forgot, the parts that were his favorite. We'll sit and remember my story together, and then he'll stand and put his arms around me and say, "well done," and that he liked my story. And my soul won't be thirsty anymore. Finally he'll turn and we'll walk toward the city, a city he will have spoken into existence a city built in a place where once there'd been nothing. "

— Donald Miller (A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Life)

Old grave stones by Petr Kratochvil

"Define yourself radically as one beloved by God. This is the true self. Every other identity is illusion."
— Brennan Manning (Abba's Child: The Cry of the Heart for Intimate Belonging)

"And once you live a good story, you get a taste for a kind of meaning in life, and you can't go back to being normal; you can't go back to meaningless scenes stitched together by the forgettable thread of wasted time."

— Donald Miller (A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Life)

God's wounds cure, sin's kisses kill.
—William Gurnall
Better be pruned to grow than cut up to burn.
—John Trapp
If a man that is desperately sick today, did believe he should arise sound the next morning; or a man today, in despicable poverty, had assurance that he should tomorrow arise a prince: would they be afraid to go to bed....?
—Richard Baxter

We fear men so much, because we fear God so little. One fear cures another. When man's terror scares you, turn your thoughts to the wrath of God.

—William Gurnall

If you yield to Satan in the least, he will carry you further and further, till he has left you under a stupefied or terrified conscience: stupefied, till thou hast lost all thy tenderness. A stone at the top of a hill, when it begins to roll down, ceases not till it comes to the bottom. Thou thinkest it is but yielding a little, and so by degrees are carried on, till thou hast sinned away all thy profession, and all principles of conscience, by the secret witchery of his temptations.
—Thomas Manton
Watch constantly against those things which are thought to be no temptations. The most poisonous serpents are found where the sweetest flowers grow. Cleopatra was poisoned by an asp that was brought to her in a basket of fair flowers. Sharp-edged tools, long handled, wound at last.

—Charles Spurgeon

“Life is 10% of what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it.”

John Maxwell

"We can stop pleading with God to show us the future, & start living & obeying like we are confident that He holds the future."

— Kevin DeYoung

"The only chains God wants us to wear are the chains of righteousness--not the chains of hopeless subjectivism, not the shackles of risk-free living, not the fetters of horoscope decision making--just the chains befitting a bond servant of Christ Jesus. Die to self. Live for Christ. And then do what you want, and go where you want, for God's glory."

— Kevin DeYoung (Just Do Something: A Liberating Approach to Finding God's Will or How to Make a Decision Without Dreams, Visions, Fleeces, Impressions, Open Doors, Random ... Liver Shivers, Writing in the Sky, etc.)

Morning Sun by Anna Cervova

"If you don't feel strong desires for the manifestation of the glory of God, it is not because you have drunk deeply and are satisfied. It is because you have nibbled so long at the table of the world. Your soul is stuffed with small things, and there is no room for the great."

— John Piper (A Hunger for God)

"One of the great uses of Twitter and Facebook will be to prove at the Last Day that prayerlessness was not from lack of time." — John Piper

Acoustic Sessions by @jackjohnson Across the Web....(Since I Missed #MM)

2010-06-01T14:12:00.000-07:00

I Heart Radio

Yahoo Maximum Performance

Sessions @ AOL

Sirius/XM artist confidential

VH1.com

...And One Superhero To Rule Them All...

2010-05-27T11:37:00.000-07:00

So what does Clark Kent, Peter Parker and Tony Stark all have in common?

If Clark ever had some red kryptonite that he couldn't get out of his system...

If Peter Parker ever let that 'evil' side of him loose again...

If Tony Stark ever decided to inject himself with a computer virus....

Have no doubt about it....

Batman would take them down!

Special thanks to my son Wes for the image above. He rocks.

Always Changing...Changing Always...

2010-05-25T13:36:00.000-07:00

Technology gets to be a blur at times.

Taking a look over what's come and gone in the last 10 years can be pretty daunting.

We went from Compuserve/AOL being the main portal to our information to the endless list of WWW's that now adorn our browsers on a daily basis.

We went from going to Yahoo (or God forbid Lycos) to find that hidden site about teddy bears to now Google is not only providing 4,570,000 search results(in .37 seconds) of 'teddy bears' but the company that created this 'search engine' has now become a proper rival to the iPhone and given birth to more offspring than an octo-mom mating with a Walton.

Apple is the new Microsoft(which if holding true to the previous statement and the future release of the Google OS...Google could be the new Apple.).

All that being said...it wasn't that long ago people were flocking to the new social network called Friendster which got replaced by Myspace...which has become a ghost town since Facebook got it's anointing.

So now people are 'talking' about leaving Facebook(which I think is premature...although it WILL happen).

So what does that temperamental crystal ball reveal about our future technology?

If anything, if you don't study the past you are bound to repeat it(a.k.a facebook becoming the next ghost town). (After you finally bowed down to that golden calf after being the last of your friends to jump on board right?)

In our fast paced world that makes Speedy Gonzalez look like the tortoise instead of the hare a few things have to be understood.

People want the fastest brightest loudest toy on the playground else they feel like they just bought a Teddy Ruxpin at the local thrift store.
Companies/Individuals have to stay one step ahead of the 'pack' else they end up getting eaten by the vultures flying overhead.
People will usually follow the crowd like you followed that little blonde girl around homeroom back in the 9th grade just to make sure they don't miss a move.
People want 'free' but aren't afraid to pay for it.
Christian Bale is the coolest Batman ever!

(*last statement might be interpreted as personal opinion but that would be out of your own ignorance.*)

Traffic at night by Petr Kratochvil

My Thoughts on the End.... #LOST

2010-05-24T07:39:00.000-07:00

So it ends.

I've got to admit I was a bit put off last night when it was over.

Then I had time to process it a bit more.

I went into this season knowing that no matter how talented the writers are NOTHING would be able to stand up to what's already been built.

How do you end something like that?

So...yes...it's over...and here a just some 'simple' thoughts on how it ended. (*spoiler alert*).

So are you the type that views the glass as half full or half empty?

Last night...for me it was half empty.

When my head hit the pillow I was thinking..."So the plane crashed and they were all dead? It was purgatory after all? None of the 'incidents' happened?"

But like I said, that was last night...my glass is now half full.

I can't look at it that way or it would have only been a waste of the last six years of my life...

I've got to view it that everything that happened....happened.

The flash sideways 'was' the purgatory but not the island. The flash sideways was where they went after they died and all waited for each other before 'moving on'.

Little things like Juliet..

I think when she whispered 'it worked' to Sawyer...wasn't about the bomb 'working'...it was her having her 'final moments flash before her eyes' and being at the vending machine saying 'it worked'.

But then again..that's just my thoughts....

I refuse to think I wasted all this time and that the writers after having given us some of the most intelligent writing on television would give us something so trivial in the end.

What's Currently on my Nightstand...

2010-05-20T14:38:00.000-07:00

Currently reading:

I've been trying to learn Java for YEARS now...finally getting able to get some real life development out of it...not much..but a little to at least help me get a bit in the game...I would love to do a lot more programming with it.

I just got the book Transforming Church in Rural America by Shannon O'Dell and I am looking forward to getting started with that next.

I am currently listening to my norm....which as of late has been the Jack Johnson channel on last.fm.

Local Lightning has also been in pretty heavy rotation..you should go check it out...download the album for free and all tips go to the Nashville Flood Relief.

So what is on everyone else's nightstand?

Goodbye Old Friend!

2010-05-19T09:09:00.000-07:00

Where will I be at in my life five years from now?

I have been looking back over the last few years and I am not happy with how little I have accomplished.

I am in the process of determining dream-busters. Those things that are preventing me from reaching my full potential.

I am starting with time-wasters.

Identifying those things that take up too much of my time that aren't in my '5' or that are going to help me on my journey from my 'dream to destiny'.

Starting next week a good friend that I have known my whole life will be kicked out of my house.

I gotta admit it's bittersweet to say goodbye to him.

He has been in my life since I could first walk.

I've learned how to laugh and cry with him.

He's been there to teach me and let me see things in a new and different way at times.

But lately, I have noticed that he is killing me.

Dragging me down.

Instead of doing some of the important things I need to focus on, I've noticed he has become a crutch.

Someone to just 'hang out' with for hours with a bag of chips as I lay on the couch.

So time-waster #1 you have been identified and although you have been a lifelong friend it is time to say goodbye.

Pretty Deep Thoughts for a Weekend Post (Exegesis vs Eisegesis)

2010-05-15T05:18:00.000-07:00

I am nowhere near, nor do I want to be a 'Theologian'.

However, I did find this very interesting after listening to Catalyst '09 with Francis Chan. Warning against coming up with something first and then finding scripture to justify it, rather than reading scripture and letting the Holy Spirit define the answers for you.

There are a lot of 'untruths' floating around these days. We have to be careful that we don't go to the Gospel with our beliefs and find scripture to justify it. Rather, we have to read the Gospel and be 'lead out' to our beliefs.

"I can justify any kind of lifestyle with an eisegetic approach."

Exegesis is the exposition or explanation of a text based on a careful, objective analysis. The word exegesis literally means “to lead out of.” That means that the interpreter is led to his conclusions by following the text.

The opposite approach to Scripture is eisegesis, which is the interpretation of a passage based on a subjective, non-analytical reading. The word eisegesis literally means “to lead into,” which means the interpreter injects his own ideas into the text, making it mean whatever he wants.

Why I don't LOVE Church Online

2010-05-14T04:59:00.000-07:00

They have MUCH better coffee at church than I do at home AND I have to make it all myself.½
That awkward feeling when the pastor is praying and you don't know whether to close your eyes or keep looking at the screen. (Gotta admit on the plus, it's sort of a power trip, right?)
(For Ladies) You REALLY REALLY wanted to wear those dress shoes you just bought yesterday.
(For Guys) You REALLY REALLY wanted her out of the house so you could go get a refund on those shoes.¼
Because you just KNOW the pastor is going to be checking your Facebook and Twitter updates to make sure you were watching and didn't have the browser minimized the whole time. (**Solitaire however leaves no evidence.**).¾
Online church rarely shows the deacons sleepin or pickin their nose. (Via Kevin a.ka Cowboy Ministry)
You can never tell if the pastor is taking an intended pause for dramatic effect....or the video is buffering.
No FREE CHILDCARE!!!!!

½ Pretty much 50/50 on this one. Mega-church's usually have Starbucks brand free in the lobby so SCORE...however, not to say Aunt Edna doesn't make the best cup of joe this side of the bayou.
¼ Yes, I realize the catch 22 involved in THAT scenario...but...I'm not writing a manual on nuclear missile takeoff procedures here.
¾ Unless played on Facebook or you posted 'Hey...I'm playing Solitaire instead of watching church online' on twitter.

Why I LOVE Church Online

2010-05-12T08:47:00.000-07:00

I can SING as loud as I want without fear of being kicked out of the congregation.
If the speaker is REALLY not in the spirit I can hit 'file>close' without having the "walk of shame" in front of everyone.
When they say 'tell the person next to you'...I can FINALLY encourage Harvey a little.
I don't have to take off my Rob Bell sports chic black glasses so I can put on some real glasses to actually read the words for the worship song.
When the 'song that's been played a thousand times in Jesus name' is played my finger can quietly click the mute button..
I don't have to worry about getting there too late and the usher escorts me to the 'rows of judgment'.¹
I don't have to worry about getting there too late and the hipster escorts me to the 'nosebleed section'².
I don't have to worry about wearing my 'spit-guard' if I do happen to get assigned to the 'row of judgement'.¹
I don't have to worry about falling to my death when I get slain in the spirit in the 'nosebleed section'.²

¹ For the small-church attender.

² For the mega-church attender.

* Disclaimer: The above observations are strictly intended for comedic purposes only, any other purposes whether real or imagined are strictly coincidental and any church or religious establishments that might be portrayed are considered strictly coincidental. The importance of 'real life' fellowship among believers is a MUST and can not be taken for granted, however there are times because of schedules or situations that a person is given the privilege of attending church online.

No pastors, churches, ushers or elders were harmed in the making of this blog.

What if Church Was Like a Sports Game?

2010-05-12T07:16:00.000-07:00

Discuss....

Under the Table and Dreaming....

2010-05-11T06:31:00.000-07:00

...so it starts.

I posted yesterday about passion and having a purpose(O.K it was in the context of blogging, but now I am realizing it's not about the act of 'blogging' at all.).

I started a new small group with a bunch of authentic guys and the sole purpose of it is to realize our dreams and the tests we must go through to arrive at our destiny.

Can I be honest and admit the one question I hate above all others that I get asked?

Actually there are a couple but they have the same theme.

"What is your dream?"

You can substitute that with (vision,purpose,goal,etc...) but they all point to the same conclusion, I have not spent enough time searching for those answers

Perhaps life got in the way.

Maybe like most of us, we were taught that dreams end when you wake up and now it's time to get some hard labor out in the fields of life.

How does one go about answering the question of purpose, destiny or dreams?

Sure there are books galore written on the subject, life coaches that speak to thousands and articles ad nauseum on the subject.

But really.....what does it mean to me and how can I find the answers to these questions in my own life?

So there you go.

I now have a goal in the weeks to come(10 weeks) to ask some hard questions. To dig deep within and find these answers.

I understand the risks of not taking this jump and of not finding these answers.

I don't want to be the status quo.

I don't want to be normal.

I want to be EVERYTHING that I was created to be.

And so....

The journey begins.........

Blogging, Cooking and Amy Adams #31DBBB

2010-05-10T11:10:00.000-07:00

So this weekend...since it was Mothers Day, I decided to honor my babies mama by watching a chick flick that I was not so interested in.

Ok...maybe it was just an excuse to watch it.

Working on the #31DBBB I thought it was interesting to see the story of Julie Powell on the screen.

Some background history...I've been 'blogging' since around 2000.

In fact, I remember the first blog I created was on blogger.com....I remember the 'job' I was working on at the time...it was a very SLOW job...I remember getting an email saying that someone had created a 'web log'.

So I jumped on.

I was doing a lot more poetry/writing/songwriting back then, so I enjoyed putting my stuff out there for people to read.

That site is now gone and I have gone through many different incarnations.
That has probably been my biggest mistake.
I got an audience and then gave it up.

However, watching the story of Julie took me back to that job and me coming across her blog during that time.

It took me back to why I originally started blogging. Like I said to put my stuff 'out' there.

The BEST thing I ever did was back up everything.

This as far, as I can tell is the first thing I ever posted.

It pretty much sums up what I was feeling during that time with writing.

There were some great lessons in that movie for bloggers though.

Write about something you are passionate about.
Set goals.
Have passion
Don't be afraid of taking a risk.
Be passionate
Let yourself come across in your writing. Don't wear a mask or try to be somebody you are not, be authentic.
Consistency is EVERYTHING.
Passion is EVERYTHING.
Be CONSISTENTLY PASSIONATE CONSISTENTLY!!!
PASSION, PASSION, PASSION

Mondays Message Via Sunday Via @FrankieDPowell

2010-05-10T08:09:00.000-07:00

I thought I would post some notes I was scribbling like a madman yesterday during one of the best messages on parenting that I have heard.

We are preparing our children for life.

We are not raising kids, we are raising adults.

The areas we have to focus with them are:

intellectually
physically
spiritually
socially

   1. We are responsible for guarding their minds.
   As the righteous think they will become.
   Be concerned with what goes into their minds not external appearance.
      2. Train their hearts.
   Teach them that life will never make sense without God.
   3. Shape their purpose.
   4. Mold their personality.

It's not about behavior modification or external controls but it is through internal transformation.

Love alone is not enough- it takes wisdom, knowledge and the presence of God.

Provide the right environment.

   You must create a 'contagious' environment.
   1. Make your marriage a priority.
   Don't let your home be 'kid-centric' it must be 'marriage-centric'.
   Let your kids see you showing affection to your spouse.
   2. Learn their love language.
   1)touch
   2)time
   3)service
   4)gifts
   5)words of affirmation.
   3. Bless them consistently.
   Don't discipline out of emotion, discipline out of objection.

Provide safety in storms.

   You can't keep your children from the storm(pain) but you can be with them during it.

The 'storms' that they will face in life.
   1. Change - Give them stability .
   2. Failure - Always let them know that they can not do anything to lose your love.
   3. Rejection - Model how we deal with rejection.

Play together regularly.

Point them to God.

Honor your parents.

      1. Value them - Hold them up in your hearts.
   2. Love them unconditionally - Tell them and show them you love them.
   3. Forgive them

Friday Freebie: Make Sure You Take Time to Refuel This Weekend!!!

2010-05-07T07:33:00.000-07:00

No, I am not talking about pumping some ethanol into your Prius this weekend.

However, if you are running low it might be a good idea.

Then again a little walk might do you good.

I have found that for myself I am having to find more ways to bring margin into all areas of my life.

I finished a small group with my pastor a few weeks back on Andy Stanleys study of 'Take it to the Limit'.

LifeChurch also has a great series called 'Margin' that me and my wife just finished as well.

I encourage you to start taking a deeper look at your life and finding margin in every aspect of it.

Financially
Schedule
Spiritual
Relationships
Moral

I think all of these are interconnected with one another and you have to find a way to make sure you aren't overloading yourself in these to find yourself with one foot off the ground at all times.

For me, Fridays mean that I unplug (internet, email, blogging, facebook, twitter, etc...) and focus on spending that quality time with those MOST important in my life.

I sit down with a pen and paper(remember those?) and evaluate my goals, priorities and achievements for the week and find a game-plan for the coming week to exceed all those areas that I failed.

So go ahead....unplug that WI-FI for the weekend.

I promise...you will have plenty to post about come Monday.

Great Blogs and the Bloggers that Blog Them #31DBBB

2010-05-06T07:23:00.000-07:00

Today's assignment is to study some blogs in my niche.

This isn't that hard of an assignment as I check out these blogs daily anyways.

Some of the blogs that I frequent are the following.

Those are all pastors however, so they have a direct and intended audience.

The three blogs that I would really study that would be more in my niche are the following:

Ragamuffin Soul (Even the name sounds familiar right?) Let's not forget about the guy who started the whole concept of us 'ragamuffins' though. Mad props to the guy I try and model my writing after.
Stuff Christians Like - Jon came up with the perfect niche for a blog and has been slaying the 'christian' model ever since.
Donald Miller's Blog - Another one of my favorite writers that I was so stoked when I saw he was starting to blog. The thing I most love about his blog is that it is showing the fact he is such a great writer at writing in general and not just having the ability to write a book once a year or so. He provides some great insights on various topics that show humor and truth.

So looking over these last three(as I said, the first three are pastors so they have a different model).the 'golden nuggets' I found is that they post frequently. You have to be constant to maintain an audience, you can't post once a month and expect people to remember you. If not daily, all of these guys post at least every few days to keep the momentum going.

Secondly, they all utilize social networking sites like twitter and facebook. Not only do they use these services but they heavily use them and use them to keep in contact with their 'fans'.

All three of these use a lot of humor, talk about relevant topics and above all keep it authentic.

That's the key.

Keep it real.

We all live one day at a time, put our pants on one leg at a time and all have battles and struggles.

Why not use this medium to interact with others in the same way?

The Forgotten Virtue of Honor

2010-05-05T09:25:00.000-07:00

Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Romans 12:10(ESV)

Can you imagine what this world would be like if everybody was trying to outdo each other in showing honor to one another?

Not trying to outdo one another by who has the biggest house, drives the nicest car, has the most athletic kids with the most trophies, has the most up-to-date tech toys, has a condo on the beach, wears the latest designer clothes, has the biggest HDTV, has the largest office, or buys the most toys for their kids.

But that we show honor trying to 'outdo' each other by thanking those who pastor us, who lead us, teach our children, watch the nursery, clean the bathrooms, park cars, pick up trash, open their homes for small groups, spend time away from their family to visit at the hospital, call us to see how we are doing today.

Honor is a dying concept that we must not let go of.

All true honor is born OUT of a heart surrendered to the King of Kings
We are treating God as common...too ordinary...Jesus is NOT your homeboy or six pound eight ounce baby Jesus.
We are NOT common or ordinary because we are made in the image of God.
Once we "get" that we will return and reclaim the forgotten virtue of honor.

You really need to hear this Babe Ruth story that starts at about 6:27.....

"You are valuable because of what Jesus did and if you are a believer, because His name is on your heart. The only reasonable response we have is to do something with our lives to honor Him" ~Craig Groeschel

Don't be like Isaiah 29:13:

""...people draw near with their mouth

and honor me with their lips,

while their hearts are far from me.."

How to Pimp a Blog Like a Sugar Daddy - #31DBBB

2010-05-05T06:41:00.000-07:00

I liked the Field of Dreams reference that Paul made.

For most people that are new to blogging you do have that thought..."If you post it, they will read it."

If I had to be a salesperson, I would die of hunger within a week. I am just not good at 'pimpin' myself.

But like a tree falling in a forest if no one is around, who is going to hear it?

For me twitter is my first source of self-pimpin.

The easiest steps for this are:

Open a twitter account and find a few people to follow...more than likely you will have a few people follow you back. If nothing else give me a follow and we will at least have one person following us! :)
Go to twitter feed and link your twitter account and blog together, set it up to send out a tweet whenever you post a blog.
You can also use twitter feed to post to your Facebook account as well. If you have Facebook and Twitter synced already this might be overkill though.

Facebook is my second source since that is where I have my close friends and family, so I post there and let them know about the post. I pick and choose with that option though. For example, a post like this about 'pimpin' my blog isn't really going to pull on the heartstrings of my Mom or Aunt Sue. I would skip posting this one to Facebook as not to have people see me posting a link to my blog everyday that isn't relevant to them until it is at the point when they do see a link they don't click on it because it is so common.

Know the difference between your Facebook crowd and Twitter crowd.

Message boards used to be a big thing before Twitter and Facebook, however, I seldom visit any these days. However, if you do frequent a message board be sure to have your website in your signature as you will get a few hits from that.

The biggest source of people visiting your blog however, as made clear to me these last few days, are other bloggers. Get involved in a community of bloggers. Read their blogs, comment and link back to them. Develop a relationship. Basically that is what it's all about anyways. Just like in any other relationship if you go out to dinner with them every night and do nothing but talk to yourself, that relationship isn't going to get very far off the ground.

Six Ways to Bring Social Media to Your Church #31DBBB

2010-05-04T07:52:00.000-07:00

I am a techie and a believer.

So what better way to share my faith and serve in ministry in my local church than to help out with new media?

I was excited when I found out our youth pastor had setup our church for livestreaming and was an advocate for social media.

The church's main goal is to go out into all the world and preach the gospel. Is this not one of the greatest times in history that we have been given 'for such a time as this'?

Here are some of the ways that churches are bringing social media to the world.

Twitter

Twitter is perhaps the easiest way to get a quick message, quote, or word of encouragement out to people that follow your church.

I like to think of Twitter as the new church sign, only you can stay warm in the winter, you've got 140 characters and you can have a line of communication that isn't limited to how many 'r''s you have available. I don't know all the history of church signs, but I would bet the number of times that someone has seen a church sign, pulled into the pastors driveway and told him that he wanted to take a picture so he could retweet it to all his friends is pretty low.

Let me plug my local church right here. (That previously mentioned youth pastor did a message recently and used church signs...so I thought I would show off a not so stupid church sign) *BTW..My church is WOC (No offense if you go to Trinity Church). :)

Facebook

The business community has found Facebook to be changing the model of advertising. With the steady increase of DVR, and satellite radio, commercials are becoming a thing of the past.

Churches are using Facebook to promote events and keep members aware of latest news.

The way that I have found Facebook to be extremely useful, is getting to know people more deeply than I ever could in the 60 seconds that I have time to talk to them on Sunday morning. By 'friending' a member of your church you can become(and allow them to become) part of your daily life Monday through Saturday.

Craig Groeschel has a 'struggling' church called lifechurch and has created a campus facebook strategy.

I would recommend a church creating a Fan page since you can incorporate your twitter posts to stream into Facebook.

A danger of facebook is 'friending' your pastor, then if you pick on your wife too much...say for example 'liking' Justin Bieber and posting videos of Bieber while signed into her account, you might have to deal with going in front of the church and 'accepting' a pink coffee cup(*sidenote for all of those that have been 'concerned' about my profile pic.*).

Livestream

Watching church from home is becoming one of the most common ways for people to see a live message these days. Whether it is a faithful church attender that is on vacation or a person who lives down the street that has never entered the doors before, offering your service 'online' is a great way to reach those unable to make it in.
There is a varying degree depending on your budget, audience and needs as to what platform you can use. The above mentioned Livestream is what we are currently using, it is free with the basic plan so if your church wants to 'dive in' and test the waters. This would be a great way to take that first step.

Itunes

I love iTunes.
It is a great way that I can have access to all those churches that I am unable to physically attend or even watch while they are streaming online.
Podcast can either be audio or video. Our church currently offers both on iTunes.
Depending on the style of the preacher or what you happen to be doing while listening/watching will determine if you get the message on video or audio.
I recently got an adapter for my iPod touch that I can download video podcasts, hook it up to my tv and watch in the living room. If I am hiking or working I'll grab an audio podcast and listen.

YouTube

YouTube is a great place for a 'quick' watch during a coffee break.
YouTube isn't a place to watch a full sermon, that's what the podcast mentioned above is for. However, if you want to offer a quick clip, or a 'microwave' message this is the place to do it. After all, we are living in a 30 second culture where we don't always want to 'wait' for everything.
Bethel Church does a great job at getting their messages condensed to less than 10 minutes for quick viewing or recap. Granted this will take someone who is great with editing both at a software level as well as a communication level.

Blogging

Blogging has been around for a long time. The thing I like most about blogging is that I can setup an RSS feeder and scan hundreds of blogs quickly and very rapidly see posts that I want to read more about.

Blogging is going to be placed somewhere in the middle of these other resources. Not quite as small as 140 characters for twitter(although there is no sin against a short blog) and not quite as time consuming as downloading and listening to an audio podcast(or even a ten minute youtube clip), blogging allows you to put into written word what is on your mind.

Some of the blogs by pastors and fellow believers alike that I frequently read are some of the following:

Craig Groeschel
Mark Driscoll
Perry Noble
Kevin DeYoung
Bill Purvis (One of my pastors in my childhood)
Mark Batterson
Brandon Matthews - Cultivate Ministries (Great resource and ministry for those in leadership)

There you go, a few ideas to get your church up and going into the age of social media.

Are there any other resources that your church is offering that I haven't listed? If so, how is your church using this?

31DBBB - Day 1: The Elevator Pitch

2010-05-03T07:03:00.000-07:00

This is Day 1 of 31 Days to Build a Better Blog, a group project 50+ other bloggers are doing together in an effort to help each other become better bloggers. You can read more about it and still sign-up to participate here.

I am joining a group of bloggers that will be working through 31DBBB(see link above if you want more info).

So, todays first objective is to write an 'elevator pitch' for my blog.

An elevator pitch, I presume, is how fast I can push the 'close door' button before anyone else gets on the elevator. Introverts Rule!

Ok, maybe not. I've gotta break free from being an introvert, so that's the reason for my blog...hey..wait, am I actually starting to come up with my 'real' elevator pitch here?

It's an overview of an idea for a product, service or project that can be delivered in the time span of an elevator ride. (And then you open the door and kick them out!)

I've got to admit that reading the first post I have been committing the cardinal sin of blogging.
Blogging about my life and 'whatever' is on my mind.

I need a focus, I have to know my audience and I have to know what I am blogging about(wow, this sounds a lot like...um...writing).

So my elevator pitch thus going forward (removing all references to garden gnomes and my 'soup of the day' posts...after all..isn't that what twitter is for?)

At ragamuffinray.blogspot.com I would like to encourage others, write about 'life lessons' most all of which I had to learn the hard way. To be an authentic and transparent blogger writing about (and finding) ways to live this vapor called life. I focus on blogging about music, books, movies, and pop culture as a whole and how it relates to fellow believers.

Stupid Things Christians Do...Trying to Defend God

2010-05-03T05:47:00.000-07:00

The recent South Park episode recently attracted a lot of attention including death threats to it's creators for portraying a religious figure.

How many times have they or many numerous shows portrayed Christ in an unflattering light?

I've yet to see an article on CNN saying that Trey and Matt got a death threat from a Christian saying that they were going to stone them in the streets.

Granted that is the extreme.

I am not justifying it, I just understand that they may not be believers and if I am going to fight for my freedom of speech they have just as much freedom of speech as long as it does not invade mine.

I have seen believers who turned red in the face and go off like a devil in a crowded church when someone(usually another Christian) says something about God that they disagree with.

So the question is do we have to defend God?

Some of the 'heated' statements I've heard from fellow believers are:

"NO! God never said that!!"
"That sinner claims to be a Christian but God wants nothing to do with her!"
"God hates those people!"

Can God take care of Himself?

He is the one that said vengeance is His.

Are we more interested in winning the debate, than we are in winning the person?

Can we win them with love instead?

Stupid Things Christians Do....Getting Caught up in Theological Debate

2010-05-02T05:40:00.000-07:00

I think it's important to know your theology.

But I believe there is nothing greater than love.

1 Corinthians 13

¹If I speak in the tongues^[a] of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. ²If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. ³If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames,^[b] but have not love, I gain nothing.

I've seen a lot of people argue someone out of the Kingdom by that person not believing in their theology.

How much energy is spent arguing about post-trib, mid-trib or no-trib?

What is the point?

You are arguing while people around us are going to hell.

I believe we should love the Lord with all our hearts and love our brothers and sisters as ourselves.

That is enough theology for me to get me up out of bed in the morning.

Stupid Things Christians Do....Live a Surface Spiritual Life

2010-05-01T06:25:00.000-07:00

Shallow.

That's how I would describe the majority of my Christian life.

Much like the lukewarm water that Christ will vomit from his mouth is how I lived.

Christian Vomit.

That was me.

It can still grab a hold of me if I don't keep it in check everyday.

In his book 'The Christian Atheist" Craig Groeschel speaks of the three lines of faith.

I believe in God and the gospel of Christ enough to benefit from it.
I believe in God and Christ's gospel enough to contribute comfortably.
I believe in God and Christ's gospel enough to give my life to it.

I spent so much of my life at that first level.

I want to finish this race in the third line.

Stupid Things Christians Do...Starting From My Viewpoint

2010-04-30T08:00:00.000-07:00

(I remember seeing a book awhile back at the airport called Ten Stupid Things Women Do to Mess Up Their Lives..I started thinking about the ten stupid things I have done in my Christian walk...ok, ok..there are MORE than ten..but I am writing a blog here...not an encyclopedia set).

I've heard my whole life to always start from the ground and build my way up.

Makes sense. If I want to build a house I can't build a roof in midair, I have to build the foundation first, starting on the ground and build up.

But when you collide into a relationship with the Saviour of the universe things tend to be upside-down-inside-out.

The christian life is like the Matrix only it makes the Matrix look like Elmo trying to teach the Count on Sesame Street to count to 10.

Perhaps one of the greatest tragedies is people thinking they can sum everything about God in five points and a handshake.

Questions?!

You think you have questions?!

Guess what? Most of them you'll never find out.

But you know. That is fine with me. I don't need all the answers. I understand there will always be questions. I understand there will always be hurt and pain in life. I understand there will always be a new romantic comedy on CBS that uses the same recycled script from Dharma and Greg.

I heard a message a few years back that changed my whole outlook on my relationship with God.

When building your view of God and who He is you MUST start with God and lead it down to you.

Most people have the realization of God and then start to define God in their minds. The problem with that is that our minds can not even conceive the greatness of God.(Psalm 139:6).

We can't limit our God to a box.

He can not be drawn inside the lines.

Once you think you understand who God is you might as well get ready for your mind to really be blown because you are about to experience a new revelation greater than you imagined.

How do you start?

Get alone.

Get comfortable.

And meditate on Psalm 46:10 for a bit.

"Be still, and know that I am God;"

Daily Promises

2010-04-29T08:23:00.000-07:00

You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind [both its inclination and its character] is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You, and hopes confidently in You. Isaiah 26:3 (AMP)

Life Changers

2010-04-28T09:09:00.000-07:00

I read quite a few books.

I listen to quite a few message series, lectures, etc.

While I am listening to them most all of them hit a nerve and I see things that could change my life.

Whether it is financially, spiritually, leadership skills, communication skills, etc...there is a lot of stuff out there and we hear it during the course of each week.

I am looking back at some of the things that have really impacted me.

Most recently, without a doubt my biggest life changer this year was Chris Hodges series five.

Like I said, I hear and read a lot of stuff, think it's good and by the next day it is yesterdays news.

But the concept of five, has exploded in my life.

Quickly, the concept is having something that you do a little everyday.

Think of chopping down a tree, you can take an axe and every day go out there and take one swing at the tree. Eventually, it will fall.

The idea is to have five things in your life that you are not satisfied how they currently are and then everyday to focus to at least take a swing at them.

I can't tell you how powerful this has been in my life.

Of course, some of my five include my spiritual walk(which I take a swing at everyday by having a constant devotion and prayer time(but not trying to chop down the tree ALL in one day)). Relationship wise, focusing on everyday spending some time with my family and doing something important with them. Physically, I've been able to hit the gym everyday by just doing a little...not running a marathon not preparing for the next winter games, but just a little bit each day.

As far as my career and future growth is concerned, I've been trying to learn JAVA for years...I am saying YEARS...since 2000. I am in the computer industry however, I never get to actually do anything with JAVA because it's not something I deal with daily, but I've been trying to break into to expand my skill set.

I've tried to get into it, read some books, take some classes, but never got through.

Since the series, I decided I would get my books and commit to at least if I can't do anything but a paragraph I am going to read that paragraph and learn something. So now five months into this, I can see my growth and by constantly hitting it everyday, I am not a Guru but I am making leaps and bounds far beyond anything I would have done just by every few months trying to read a book straight through.

#MondayMemories

2010-04-26T07:52:00.000-07:00

Weekends fly by so fast.

I hope everyone had a nice relaxing weekend.

I got very little sleep because of all the storms and little babies waking up frightened by the storm.

Isn't it great to have someone that you can go to when you are scared?

When the rain is falling, the thunder is crashing and the lightning is flashing all around you.

Someone is there to pick you up, hold you in their arms and tell you that everything is going to be ok.

I am so glad I still have Someone that I can run to when the thunderstorms of life scare me and I can go run into my Fathers arms and not only does He tell me that everything will be ok. But He even calms those storms.

Speed Talker in Training

2010-04-24T15:49:00.000-07:00

Just read this from Mark Batterson...

We talk at about 150-words-per minute, but listeners can process speech at about 600 words-per-minute. That is why your mind wanders while listening to someone who speaks slow!

Ok...I've got my work cut out for me.

Being that I already have that southern drawl.

But that point aside..the bright side might be for me...

If the average guy really does only speak 7,000 words a day...

if I can reach that 600 words a minute...I could be finished talking for the day in 12 minutes.

If I was an auctioneer that means a 12 minute workday...

ok..by not working I create mind-numbing posts like this.

I guess I will stay at my 20 words a minute. y'all(drawn out for 15 seconds....)

First Friday of the Week Post...(and other sayings that make sense to a southerner)

2010-04-23T08:33:00.000-07:00

I do a lot of work up North...it's always fun to go up there and be the oddball out. However, I don't really take advantage of it. It's kind of hard when you look like a mix between Brad Pitt and George Clooney and have watched movies about NYC until I actually start to think I AM Robert De Niro and I AM walking here! (ok, one of those statements might be slightly skewed.)

But, I think it's time I started adding a little 'southern' flair to my repertoire.

I don't want to be Bobby Boucher from the waterboy...but I don't have any 'southern sayings' that I can throw into my conversations that will prop up the ears of a northerner like a coon dog with a bare leg.

Now I am in IT so I gotta take it in stride and all. But I can't wait to be in my next big sit down with the Vice President of a large Manhattan bank and say "I know there are a few issues we are experiencing with support but every dog has a few fleas." BOOM. That's how we roll in the south, baby!

Let's get a few others into our repertoire.

I know the expenses of investing in a server and professional service expenses will be a little costly upfront but you don't want to get caught with your pants down when the tornado has blown away the outhouse.
Sure, your current software is saving you a few bucks here and there but even a blind squirrel finds an acorn every now and then.
I am trying to find the bright side of your proposal but it's about as scarce as a hens teeth.
There are going to be ups and downs because the sun don't shine on the same dogs tail all the time.
You don't want to wait until the last minute to get these specs down, otherwise it's gonna be like two goats in a pepper patch.
I know there are many excuses we could make for the issues we had but if ifs' and buts' were candy and nuts everyday would be Christmas.
(when you are with coworkers and your cell phone rings)"Excuse, me a minute, I've got to talk to a man about a cow."

And then there are some things you probably don't want on a performance review.

If I put his brain in a nat's butt, it would fly backwards.
She's about as useful as a button on a dishrag.
Dumber than Friday night roadkill.
She is nuttier than a squirrel's droppings.
He has molasses in his britches.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-04-22T13:47:00.001-07:00

Confessions of a Christian Atheist (Part 2) The Church

2010-04-22T09:24:00.000-07:00

I lived most all of my Christian life not understanding the full power of the church.

We are the church, however I am talking about having a fellowship with a local congregation that you experience life together.

I can't even say that I was one of those 'one day a week' Christians because I would hardly even make it to a sunday morning service and if I did it often felt more like having a root canal than anything life-giving.

Honestly, it was a waste of my time and space even being there.

The problem was that my heart wasn't in check.

I didn't understand WHY I was going to church.

Was it just so I could hear my favorite worship song?

Get a few goosebumps from the message?

Get a 'gold star' for being in attendance?

Since August of last year I found a church that literally turned my family upside down.

I WANT to go to church.

I WANT to see and fellowship with these people.

Most of all it is not 'disconnected' from my 'real world'. Part of the process I am experiencing as I am being reformed from a Christian Atheist is that there is no 'disconnection' from my spiritual walk and my Monday through Saturday walk. It's one and the same.

Most importantly however, I am seeing that it's not about what the church can do or give to me. It is what I can do for the church. "It is better to give than receive." Is almost always used financially, but I am seeing it more and more in acts of service. I would much rather give help to someone than receive help from someone. I would much rather pray for someone than receive prayer from someone.

Sure, you won't always get your style of music, your favorite message series preached, your 'feel good' vibes every time you go to church. But becoming a mature Christian and less of a Christian Atheist will result in you being able to feed yourself those things during the week so that when you go on a Sunday you can be there for those who need what you are able to give.

I've got to confess, that is what I was missing from church the whole time. I would go on Sunday(rarely), get my song and dance and think that it would get me through the week with a little more 'fire insurance'.

I never saw it for what it was, a family. A band of brothers. All in the same battle, all in the same foxholes and as long as we all have each others back we will all make it out of here stronger for the battle.

How am I viewing "church" differently these days?

I am not going to church just to get anything out of it. Although this is definitely something I am receiving it is not my main intent. My focus is to give to others first and in giving I will receive much more than I ever could by just going with my 'hands open'.
These people that I once thought were strange, delusional and possible escapes from the mental asylum I now see as part of my family. My brothers and sisters. As my pastor said last night, it's like going to a family reunion without that 'weird Uncle Freddy'.
We are stronger together than apart. There are troubles unknown to us everyday. I can't do it on my own. But with others holding me up, we can make it through the storm. I need help raising my kids, I need help being a faithful husband, I need help keeping my motives in check. Who else is going to help me do these things?

Get connected with a local church. Simply ask God to lead you to where you need to be. If you are currently in a church and you are feeling like it is draining you, don't be afraid to visit another church, if that is where you feel the Lord is calling you. You don't have to go to the same church just because your grandparents grandparents went there. Find somewhere that you feel like you are being used.

We were going to a megachurch that was just awesome. It is doing some great things in our state. However, with it being so large I never got 'pushed' out to do anything. I could sit in the sidelines just like I always have and not make a difference. Basically, I could just keep receiving without ever being asked to give.

The end of last July, I saw I really needed to do something different. I had to get involved. I had to start making a difference. I spent sometime in prayer and heard that I needed to be someplace else. I didn't know where. I started googling churches in the area and found one that according to mapquest was only 15 minutes from my house. I listened to a sermon online and thought it was great. Turns out a lot of our pastor friends knew the pastors and spoke highly of them. We went and it turned out to be 30 minutes away, not quite what we were expecting(or used to), and for an introvert like me it wasn't somewhere I could just hide in the pews.

But there was something about it that had God's hand all over it. The people were so friendly, when we walked through the door we just felt right at home. We visited the next few weeks and everytime we left we had this 'thirsty' feeling, literally, THIRSTY. We had to go to Sams Club and put a case of bottled water in the van for after church on the ride home to drink.

We were actually THIRSTING for more of this relationship with God, family and the community.

So, for me that is what it is all about. I want to go THIRSTY. I want to drink until I am satisfied.

I want to drink from the LIVING WATERS OF LIFE.

I want to go to a place that is LIFE GIVING.

Tired of 'Pretty Music'....

2010-04-21T12:08:00.000-07:00

Did I listen to pop music because I was miserable? Or was I miserable because I listened to pop music? ~Rob (High Fidelity)

It hit me just a few minutes ago while listening to a song why I don't like 'christian format radio'...

it's too pretty.

I've always been in the 'indie-acoustic-singer-songwriter-emo-barefeet-and-a-six-string' music...

there are tons of great artist in CCM....no doubt...(well...not 'No Doubt'...although that would be AWESOME!!!)

But I like to think that Jesus wouldn't prefer top 40 to raw music.

One of my favorite quotes is the above from High Fidelity....so in reverse...could we say 'did I listen to christian music because I was joyful, or was I joyful because I listened to Christian music?'

I've got to admit, there are times when I am feeling down and slap in a little Hillsong...and it instantly lifts me up...it's great, it's awesome.

But sometimes...I listen to other artists that have this raw...almost melancholy sound and although it can be very positive it takes me to a place that while still 'full of joy'...it's also emotional on an entirely different level....ok, I am not doing a great job in describing it...guess it's got to be one of those 'indescribable' emotions.....probably a lot like David had when he was writing most of Psalms....Psalms isn't all 'pretty' poetry...it's real...it's gritty...it's emotional..it's heartfelt...and it wasn't written to just 'pick you up' or make you feel good...it was David writing his emotions down.

I am listening to this right now...over and over...it's so beautiful..

This is The Riverside Worship Project...if you'd like to hear the AMAZING album version that is hauntingly beautiful head on over to noisetrade.com and get it free.

"I'm going to sing a song even if it hurts...if it hardly comes out...been doubting for so long..my walks become a crawl..and I never could get up without You."

Confessions of a Christian Atheist (Part 1)

2010-04-19T06:59:00.000-07:00

Hello.

My name is Ray.

I have lived a majority of my Christian life as a Christian Atheist.

I have lived with the intellectual knowledge that God exists, however I have not lived practically as if that truth was a reality.

I maintained the standard of 'luke warm' living by Monday through Saturday as if I was in control and occasionally on a Sunday morning give props to the big guy up in the sky.

Bible belt ideology ruled my mindset. Because I grew up in Sunday School and memorized John 3:16, I could recite the books of the bible, I knew the words of the song on hymnal page 126, and I had collected enough 'stars' from bringing my bible to kids church every Sunday, I had a one way ticket to heaven free from any kind of fire and brimstone that the screaming preacher on Sunday Morning could scare me with.

I lived for decades in this lifestyle.

With one foot firmly planted in the 'real world' while I at least kept the other foot(OK, maybe just my big toe) dabbling in the living waters.

And then in the fourth quarter of 2009 that brown haired, blue-eyed 8 lb 7 ounce baby Jesus that I was 'dating' not so politely grabbed my attention.

Open Letter to (**** *) (scratch that...just a blog vomit)

2010-04-16T11:22:00.000-07:00

Ok...I've debated about posting a blog about JK...I've tried writing one with just my thoughts, my surprise, my questions but in the end nothing quite comes out 'right'.

I've had a few days to digest it now.

So the following is a combo of all the above...a little 'blog vomit' on an issue I wish we didn't have to talk about.

I started listening to JK before she was even signed to Gotee Records back in the early days when she had her 'Wishing Well' demo out. Amazing voice, acoustic guitar...I am all in.

Through her career I was a fan and was disappointed when she left but I understood it. I have a similar case where I got burned out playing/writing music and I wasn't even in a band that was signed...I just played for our Church. So yes, burnout happens.

So fast forward to a few months back and she came back into the spotlight with a few shows in Nashville and New York. A new album no longer on Gotee records and on an independent label, not a 'Christian' label.

So the news hit Tuesday and I was in shock.

I don't know her as a person and she is not in my sphere of influence, so how should I handle this? Is it any of my concern, as a fan, as a fellow believer?

No doubt the limelight of christian music has not had it's share of scandals and downfallings...one of the reasons I think more and more everyday that this big 'business' is no longer what it was originally intended for. (read in the open letter below my Rich Mullins quote regarding this).

I can't be a hypocrite by saying don't listen to her music because she is not selling herself as a 'christian artist'. I don't listen to ALL 'christian' music. I never have been able to distinguish by the two, since I haven't met these people, I can't see their fruit, I can't and shouldn't judge their hearts. I don't turn on TV and say I want to watch LOST now is J.J Abrams a christian? What is his sexuality? Does he eat pork? Does he wear clothe made of more than five fabrics? Some people might do that, more power to them and that is great, but the Spirit has not laid that conviction in my heart. So unless He tells me otherwise, I will view 'entertainment' as entertainment and try not to read too much into it. If you ever get the chance to read 'At the Crossroads' by Charlie Peacock it is an eye opening book on what is going on in our 'christian' industry.

Who am I to judge now...after all at least she is still 'seeking' Gods will and reading the bible and saying she is still a believer. Let's not forget that Katy "I Kissed A Girl" Perry was a christian artist however as far as I know she doesn't even claim to be a believer anymore.

I grew up in a time when Jimmy Swaggart was saying that the band I was listening to daily on my Walkman was from the bowels of Hell(Stryper). My youth pastor despised christian rock and said it was of the devil. Whaaa?

Ok, these years have passed and big $$$$ have made CCM a lucrative business.

What about the song Healer? It was written by a guy that claimed he had cancer and after the song was playing at churches all over the world he came out and said he never had cancer.

Is that song any less powerful? No, it's still played and being used...

Now that JK's 'hidden' sin has came out, does that mean she can't still be used? That in her 'struggle' one day in her 'story' the truth will be revealed?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Vomit post #2

When you are in the public eye. There is certain amount of responsibility that you take on.

When you are in the public eye and have declared your faith there is even a larger responsibility that goes beyond the realms of our little world.

It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin(stumble). (Luke 17:2)

I have always felt this war between the sacred and the secular when it comes to entertainment. Like the late Rich Mullins said, you can't get your spiritual nourishment from a music concert(cd or artist for that matter), go to church, you don't have to buy a ticket and the people there love you. I am sure that those who are struggling can find it very hard to find a church that would just 'love' them. I go to one of those churches that do 'love' the people and not the sin. But, the line has to be drawn that if you are going to a bible believing church that they might 'love' you but not agree with your lifestyle as well as not wanting you to continue that lifestyle.

Now, the issue comes into play that if a 'lifestyle' is indeed a sin, then I believe there are not 'categories' for sins. A sin is a sin in God's eyes. A lie is the same as adultery. Stealing is the same as coveting. We that have been born again are washed in the blood and are forgiven. However, we don't continue or 'give in' to our struggles just because it makes us happy or we find 'joy' in it. We have not been put on this earth for our happiness, our joy, our desires. But that is a entire post on its own.

I think the biggest heartbreak here is for fans that looked up to you, who might have even found a relationship at one of your shows or through one of your songs. I know the Holy Spirit is the one that spoke to the person's heart. But as people we put others on a pedestal when they don't need to be. Again, that's human nature, an entire new discussion.

The temptation is there, but there is a difference between 'struggling' with a temptation and embracing it and allowing others to see it. What if you are wrong, what if you are right? I would much rather err on the side of caution than to be on the other side of Luke 17:2.

I guess what I am saying is a person on the street, that I run into I am going to love that person to death no matter the lifestyle choice. I will love 'you' to death no matter the lifestyle choice. I guess my biggest cause of concern is loving the image of the artist that you once represented.

Upon reading the discussion I see that you don't attend a 'church'. I have no doubt as to the reason, however I think this is probably the reason for which the confusion has swallowed you. For years, I fought established organizations known as the 'church' because of various reasons, probably on the same level as yours. Once, however, I did plant myself down 'no matter what', I can't even explain the work it did in my life. It would make no sense to try to explain it because it's one of those 'indescribables' in life. I think the times we are living in we feel we must know and understand all, but there are many things that we can't quite wrap our minds around and we were never meant to.

In saying all that. I wish you best and love you.

Friday Five

2010-04-16T10:59:00.000-07:00

1.What was your favorite cartoon as a child?
G.I Joe, He-man, Transformers.
2. Do you read comic books? Why or why not?
Not now, when I was a kid I did...I have a box of them now that my kids love looking at. I don't read them now because it is overly priced these days and not worth the few pages that is in them.
3. Have you read a book and thought it should be turned into a movie? If so, which book?
No
4. Do you watch cartoons now if you are a teenager/adult?
Yes, constantly.
5. What is your favorite quote from a television show?
What you talkin 'bout Willis?

Wordless Wednesday

2010-04-14T07:02:00.000-07:00

Spring Cleaning...Get Rid of Those Idols

2010-04-13T09:31:00.000-07:00

My closet is almost completely bare of clothes.

Last year I got rid of a lot of summer clothes and now this year when we put up the winter clothes I noticed I had only a few shirts.

Not much of spring cleaning as far as clothes that must be done for me this year.

I keep running into the same topic however, and when that happens, I know Someone is trying to get my attention and make sure I hear it.

Idols.

The first commandment I learned in Sunday School was of course #1. They shall not have any other God's before me.

Ok. That's pretty simple.

I don't have a Buddha statue in my living room.

I don't have any golden calves in my front yard.

But, sometimes that's what we think of and so we check it off our list.

What does it mean to have another god?

It means much more than the person I am throwing my prayer over Taco Bell to.
It means much more than who I am singing to in a Sunday morning church service.

A god is who my object of worship is directed towards.

Being human we worship a lot. We can't help it. We were created to worship. However, if I am not careful, that which is natural for me will develop an action towards a very unnatural object.

What are items that have 'stolen' away my worship from God?

Technology(insert list here...we are bombarded by technology that according to the latest results I have seen we 'run' towards from the moment we wake up to the moment we close our eyes. Some other results show that a lot of people often wake up during the night and 'sign on' to various technology. If that's not a 'god' I don't know what is.)
Relationships (husbands, wives, children's, boyfriends, girlfriends, parents, etc.)
Money (read the story of the rich young ruler)
Music (probably one of my biggest struggles)
Addictions (good, bad or indifferent we all have addictions that can be put on a pedestal that we center 'around' our lives.
Religion (yes, you can serve religion without even serving God...do you hold a church, pastor or leader up higher than you do God? A red flag should be going up if you do.
Jobs/Career
Etc, Etc, Etc

Those are some of the ones I have had to make a determined approach in my life 'not' to put before God. No doubt, I have failed many times and it's a decision that you must make daily before it becomes an idol.

I am reading The Christian Atheist by Craig Groeschel right now and one of the points he made was that an addiction (which in my view can be an idol) is anything that you can't put down for at least a week.

So it's spring time. It's a good time to clean up. But while you are getting rid of last years styles that are no longer in fashion, make sure you clean out that idol closet as well. I know I am working on mine.

Monday Memories

2010-04-12T15:52:00.000-07:00

Had a pretty productive weekend, hope you did as well.

Had a much needed date night with the mrs....

can you say you Outback Steak House? Steak, Baked potato and lobster tail...14.99...not complaining about that at all.

We were planning to hit a concert or movie....instead decided to just do a little shopping with some gift cards we got from Christmas that we never had time to use.

Saturday, we had some new friends over for dinner and had a great time.

Sunday, our sabbath, we enjoyed with our church family and spent the day just lounging around the house and watched a bunch of movies.

If you look at that first sentence, I said it was productive. No, I didn't get much of anything done at all. But more than ever I am seeing how important our time is when we are 'counting our days'.

Time spent with family and friends will never trump time getting 'stuff' done or making a few bucks.

At least not in my book.

crashing (Friday Flashback Circa Nov 2003)

2010-04-09T09:53:00.001-07:00

days roll by like thunder
while walking on a stained glass ceiling
you take me under
pushing me off my fears
crashing into your tears
i drown underneath the oceans
with my own rivers overflowing inside
beside
caught in the middle of this
what they call an eternity inside the arms
inside the arms of love
can you not fathom
this ever perplexing
never convincing lie
that i have have hid inside of
this broken cheating selfish child
that clings for the reasons to let it go
to just let go
collapse into your hands
only then,
may i find a strength
a love
a hope
forgiveness
that no god on this earth
has ever known
no man on this earth
has ever felt
it's like asking
'what do you see?'
when you are blind
it's like asking
'what do you hear?'
when you are deaf
it's like feeling
an afternoon mist
hitting against your face
on a warm summer day
breathing the flowers of spring
the beauty of the leaves of fall
but i must
go through this night
to make my way home
turn on the light
find you inside
resting content
peaceful
in love
with you
are in with me
and another day
goes by.

~rc2k

As Much Fun as a Country Song in a Christian Movie...

2010-04-08T14:40:00.000-07:00

“Christian movies are often like the reverse of country songs. The guy gets his wife back, his dog back and his truck back.” ~Jon Acuff

Too bad the real Christian life doesn't always work out like we want...make no doubt it all happens according to His will...but we are bound to lose a dog or truck in this life.

In fact...reading through this thing called the Bible...most of His followers were jailed, beaten tortured and hung upside down on a cross....come to think of it...this guy named Jesus...was beaten, crucified and DIED.....

but...I'm not knocking the whole name it and claim it...blab it and grab it thing.....I guess some people are more important than others in the Kingdom.....#justsayin.

whoiam.

2010-04-07T12:47:00.000-07:00

where i was

is not where i am going

where i have been

is not my destination

what i was

does not define me

what i did

is a lesson learned

who i am

is revealed in my Fathers eyes.

~rc2k(2010)

101 Reasons I Love My Wife

2010-03-31T09:12:00.000-07:00

my wife, my bride, my love. How do I love you let me count the ways.

1)beautiful eyes
2)long dark hair
3)laugh
4)Makes great brownies
5)gives great hugs
6)hand fits just right into mine
7)great with the small details(in which I am not)
8)great with the kids
9)sings beautifully to music
10)improved my wardrobe a lot
11)lips are so soft and kissable
12)only time I don’t miss her is when I’m with her
13)dazzling smile
14)great cuddler
15)continually helps me along this journey
16)My breath still catches in my throat when I see her across a crowded room
17)she's smart
18)good at meeting people(and teaching me a thing or two)
19)says “I love you” and means it
20)romantic
21)a true proverbs 31 woman
22)great at finding ways to be a good steward
23)not materialistic
24)absolutely faithful
25)very feminine
26)doesn’t make me watch chick flicks(although it's usually the other way around
27)loves me unconditionally
28)she makes me a better person
29)she's the reason I dream
30)despite every mistake I have ever made in my life she stands beside me and still loves me as much as the day we first met.
31)She cleans the house when I won’t
32)She let’s me sleep late on weekends
33)She stuck with me through the tough times
34)She lets me have my time alone when I need it
35)She helps me get out of my comfort zone.
36)She doesn’t mind when I put on a few pounds
37)She is not high maintenance
38)she always enters my mind when I need her
39)she said YES!
40)she something in me that no one else could
41)She's a great cook and always trying something new...no 'tuna casserole' every night here.
42)She enjoys things I enjoy 'just to be around me' more.
43)She is great at bible study.
44)She was created just for me.
45)She forgives me.
46)She tolerates me more than anyone else ever could.
47)She is independent while still maintaining dependency on me.
48)She has a sixth sense much like a superhero could only dream of.
49)She knows the difference between Mayonnaise and Miracle Whip!!!
50)She laughs at the fact that I do not know the difference between the two.
51)She is a great mom.
52)She is romantic.
53)She loves me as I am though wants me to always become a better person.
54)She lets me be me.
55)She is a hottie.
56)She is a great friend.
57)She accepts people as they are.
58)She is not prejudice.
59)She is a daughter of God.
60)When I am down she picks me up, when I am feeling bad she knows what to say to give me encouragement.
61)She likes my songs that I make up...mainly involving possums and walmart...
62)I love the way she can drink caffeine at midnight and fall asleep, if I drink any after noon I am up the whole night.
63)She loves to talk, so being the quiet one that ALWAYS helps me out in group settings.
64)She puts God first.
65)She puts me second.
66)She puts our kids third.
67)She has a childlike sense of wonder.
68)I no longer have to worry about finding a date.
69)She goes to concerts and movies with me even when she has no interest in either.
70)She didn't get "too upset" when she thought we were going on a 'formal' dress date...only to see the Dark Knight.
71)She forgave me for that 'miscommunication' that happened to be on our anniversary night as well.
72)She will go see movies like Dark Knight with me.
73)She is my standard of beauty.
74)No woman on this earth can come close to her in beauty, kindness and love.
75)She is an amazing artist and I am amazed at the talent that has been given to her.
76)I get lost in her voice every time she talks...which is quite often, so I love it.
77)That she doesn't get too upset when she mistakes my 'getting lost in her voice' as not paying attention to what she is saying.
78)She is not a shopaholic....of which I am sooo thankful.
79)Her smile lights up a room.
80)She likes stability and security...two things I tend to throw to the wind..so she keeps me grounded in that way.
81)Although her smile lights up the room for everyone else...it lights up my soul.
82)She loves animals.
83)She puts up with some of my crazy antics over my love of animals.
84)She enjoys the simple things in life.
85)Although she has stability she let's me 'off my chain' every once and awhile to do something unpredictable.
86)She doesn't mind that I have no mechanical abilities whatsoever.
87)She doesn't mind that when it comes to maintenance work she knows there is a 50/50 chance....either it's going to be fixed...or there is going to be a trip to the emergency room involved.
88)She didn't try and kill me the time I tried to have a tree land on top of her.
89)She is way better at shopping for grocery's than I am..and can come in under 10% of what my bill would be.
90)She is much better at forgiving than I am.
91)She decided to go out with me.
92)She didn't mind when I took her to a fast food restaurant and a 99 cent movie theater for our first date.
93)She puts others before herself.
94)She makes me laugh and laughs at my stupid jokes...no matter how old they get.
95)She is a great role model for my daughters.
96)She challenges me to be a better person.
97)She is an amazing prayer warrior.
98)She does a lot of housework for such a large family.
99)She loves God with a passion and not just religious tradition.
100)She completes me.
101)I love her for making this the easiest thing I have ever had to write.

the whip, the hammer, the cross

2010-03-29T09:14:00.000-07:00

the nail they hammered into His wrist
  tearing skin - ripping flesh

the whip that struck my Saviour's back
  time and time again it cracked

the hammer striking against the nails
  with every hit the maddening crowd did yell

the cross He carried to mount calvary
  the weight of sin from you and me

the crowd that yelled 'crucify'
  when pontius pilate asked 'who should die?'

the veil was torn upon that day
  from the blood that flowed we now proclaim

the nails have since turned to rust
  the crown of thorns now nothing more than dust

the whip, the cross has long since gone
  the end it was not - for that third day on

the stone was rolled
the body gone
  an empty tomb
   when they arrived at dawn

"why seek the living among the dead?"
  "He is risen!!" the angel then said.

resurrection wonder, you now shall live
  "go!" "tell!" to all that He might give

your sins though crimson
  now washed white as snow

the whip, the cross, the hammer

used for God's amazing love
  for Him to show.

~raycarroll (3292010)

Thoughts in Life's Stadium

2010-03-25T09:25:00.000-07:00

I was able to hear Mark Batterson preach last night at a local church.

Mark's book In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day is one of my favorite books.

He talked about the Rich Young Ruler in Matthew 19 in a way that was quite fresh and eye-opening.
It's quite amazing how you can read a story in the Bible so many times and then the Spirit opens a few words that can rock your entire world. The matrix has nothing on the supernatural realm.

Some notes I made last night:

* The Rich Young Ruler is everything that we want to be. On paper he has everything. (He was very religious and claimed to have not broken ANY of the commands!!).

*We have fixated on sins of commission and while those are wrong, we must not lose sight of sins of omission, which is NOT doing something that you should. "You can do nothing wrong and still do nothing right."

*The stories in the bible that cause us the most discomfort reveals our own flaws.

*Jesus doesn't want half of you...part of you...or one day a week. He want's it ALL! Every fiber of your being.

*We have only ONE problem..that thing that we have not submitted to the Lord. Is there something that you find your identity and security in that is outside of Jesus? Like he said to the Rich Young Ruler, give it up and follow Him...sadly for the Rich Young Ruler...He probably died a Rich Old Ruler...he lost SO much for NOTHING. Imagine what he could have accomplished in his life with all that he had if he would have only given up that ONE THING!

*Most of us spend most of our lives accumulating the wrong things for the wrong reasons. We should not be concerned about accumulating possessions...we should be more in the pursuit of experiences. That is what life is about. Experiences while following Jesus.

* Most of all...obey the prompting of the Holy Spirit.

Mark shared his experience at the Birmingham Dream Center that makes use of this point.

Straining Toward the Goal

2010-03-19T08:11:00.000-07:00

Sometimes you hit it out of the park and sometimes you strike out.

I feel like 2009 was a pivotal year in my life. New passions were awakened, new relationships started, and I started seeing a glimpse of the journey ahead of me.

I started this year, not making resolutions but looking at a principal I learned from Chris Hodges series Five.

A principal that he learned from John Maxwell in that you don't try to chop down the whole tree but everyday take one swing with an axe to the tree.

I came up with my spiritual, relational, financial, career and missional five.

Oh how the 'best laid plans of mice and men often go astray'.

Somewhere along the last month though, 'life' got in the way as it so often does.

Compared to last year, I am off to a slow start. I am still reading the same book I was reading in January! Last year I went through the most books I have read in a year and was very happy about that fact and wanted to surpass that even more this year. So far that has been a big #fail.

I wanted to continue the training progress I started in 2009 by learning new skills but again, that has been barely a spark of a brushfire.

My spiritual life seems to hit great highs as well as great lows so far this year. I want that to be the main thing, I want it to be consistent and a top priority, however I am still finding non-substantial things getting in my way for that high calling.

I am developing some great relationships, but I am also not investing enough into them that I should be, again because of those 'non-substantial' things.

In 2009, I started learning a lot about a minimalist lifestyle. I think that is the key for removing those non-substantial things out of my life and focusing on the higher things.

Now that I have gotten all of that out of the way, I know that talking, blogging or even thinking about what I have to do is not going to get any of this done.

I have to ACT.

I have to forget about yesterday and focus on that before me. Taking one day at a time, taking that axe to that tree daily until it comes down. ...and having done all this I will stand.

Philippians 3 (ESV)
Straining Toward the Goal

12Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 13Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. 15Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. 16Only let us hold true to what we have attained.

17Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. 18For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. 20But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.

Another Ragamuffin...Another Blog...

Killa - Lecrae

What a Lady Wants(What You Need to be if You Have One)

Vacant Souls - Vacant Joy

Sun Stand Still Review

For My Soulmate

The Undertakers Heart

What I meant to say was....

SoulPrint by @MarkBatterson Review

15 Albums That Impacted My Life

3 Ways to Make Guests Feel Welcome (If You are Mark Driscoll)

YouTube #Fail...but in SUCH a Funny Way...Single Again...Because Luv is a Verb!

A Prayer For God's Will

The Closeness of Death - (Poetry Post)

We Walk This Road by @rrtfb Album Review

Kickin the Bucket - First Day of Summer...Let's Get This Started!!

Kickin the Bucket - Read a Classic and Read a Biography (What Do You Recommend?)

Kickin the Bucket - Write a Book of Psalms

Teach Me To Number My Days....

Kickin the Bucket - Visit a Cemetery

Join Me in Kicking the Bucket This Summer!

So Long Status Quo, I Think I Just Let Go..

Confessions of a Mundane Existence After Staring at the Face of Death

Best Opening Track on an Album??

What Control's Your Thoughts Controls Your Life

You're born. You suffer. You die. Fortunately, there's a loophole. - 30 Great Quotes

Acoustic Sessions by @jackjohnson Across the Web....(Since I Missed #MM)

...And One Superhero To Rule Them All...

Always Changing...Changing Always...

My Thoughts on the End.... #LOST

What's Currently on my Nightstand...

Goodbye Old Friend!

Pretty Deep Thoughts for a Weekend Post (Exegesis vs Eisegesis)

Why I don't LOVE Church Online

Why I LOVE Church Online

What if Church Was Like a Sports Game?

Under the Table and Dreaming....

Blogging, Cooking and Amy Adams #31DBBB

Mondays Message Via Sunday Via @FrankieDPowell

Friday Freebie: Make Sure You Take Time to Refuel This Weekend!!!

Great Blogs and the Bloggers that Blog Them #31DBBB

The Forgotten Virtue of Honor

How to Pimp a Blog Like a Sugar Daddy - #31DBBB

Six Ways to Bring Social Media to Your Church #31DBBB

31DBBB - Day 1: The Elevator Pitch

Stupid Things Christians Do...Trying to Defend God

Stupid Things Christians Do....Getting Caught up in Theological Debate

Stupid Things Christians Do....Live a Surface Spiritual Life

Stupid Things Christians Do...Starting From My Viewpoint

Daily Promises

Life Changers

#MondayMemories

Speed Talker in Training

First Friday of the Week Post...(and other sayings that make sense to a southerner)

Wordless Wednesday

Confessions of a Christian Atheist (Part 2) The Church

Tired of 'Pretty Music'....

Confessions of a Christian Atheist (Part 1)

Open Letter to (******** *****) (scratch that...just a blog vomit)

Friday Five

Wordless Wednesday

Spring Cleaning...Get Rid of Those Idols

Monday Memories

crashing (Friday Flashback Circa Nov 2003)

As Much Fun as a Country Song in a Christian Movie...

Too bad the real Christian life doesn't always work out like we want...make no doubt it all happens according to His will...but we are bound to lose a dog or truck in this life.

whoiam.

101 Reasons I Love My Wife

the whip, the hammer, the cross

Thoughts in Life's Stadium

Straining Toward the Goal

Open Letter to (**** *) (scratch that...just a blog vomit)