Today's Smile

Now and then it's good to pause in our pursuit of happiness and just be happy.

--Unknown

Merry Christmas Keyton

"Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have."

--Hebrews 13:5

Two days ago, I was doing some Christmas shopping, getting ready for the long drive to Louisiana from Chicago, IL. I was just doing some last minute shopping for friends and family. I had previously thought I wouldn't have had the chance to visit home, but I soon was able to get off work and everything.

I then became extremely excited and called everyone telling them I'd be home for Christmas. I was really excited to see my best friends Seth and Brock. It's always refreshing to see and hang out with them. As well as my dear friend Zach! I miss Zach! Holiday's tend to bring joy, laughter, and happiness to all.

I love the holiday season. I find joy in the happiness of others. Especially my friends and family. If they are doing okay, then so am I. I digress. As I mentioned before, I'd done a lot of shopping a couple days ago. On my way to the grocery store, I hit some ice, lost control of my car, hit a curb, ran off road, and my tire exploded, and rim bent.

This caused my front alignment to be drastically out of alignment, and further damaging my front axel. Long story made short, it will cost $600 dollars to get fixed. Merry Christmas Keyton. Now, my car is not drivable, and want be repaired in time for me leaving. Not that I can afford to readily have it fixed anyway.

I'll be spending the holiday right here in Chicago, which I am slowly coming to grips that it is okay. Yes, I'm sadden that I want be spending with the holiday with my loved ones but that's life sometime. You have to make the best of it.

Beautiful People

I think that Jason Upton is one of the most prolific worship leaders and song writers of this generation. His music speaks to the heart of God. You can hear is passion and feel his heart as he conveys his emotions for his King.

I recently listened to the EP "Beautiful People" and found it to be both intrinsically apt for our generations heart cry. We are all beautiful people! Here are the lyrics.



Turn down the radio, I wanna hear.
Turn down the voices, hurting my ear.
There's a moment, getting away...
and there's something, I wanna say.

Roll down the windows, and this is what you'll hear:
the sound of a stranger's voice in your ear...
Is it fear that, has kept you away?
From the song and the wind and the waves?

Saying: we can be friends, if you want to...
there's a friendship waiting... to be.
We can be friends, if you want to...
take my hand, be friends with me.

Beautiful music, memories and years...
of beautiful laughter and beautiful tears.
I's a beautiful morning today...
with the wind blowing... every which way.

Beautiful people... forgive and forget.
and eyes look like children, who haven't lost yet
Entrust us the strength of their love
disarms all the powers... that separate us.

Because: we can be friends, if you want to...
there's a friendship waiting to be.
We can be friends, if you want to...
take my hand, be friends with me.

Today's Smile

Well, enough about me. Let's talk about you. What do you think about me?

--Bette Midler

We Are Light To A Darken World

"For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light! For this light within you produces only what is good and right and true.

Carefully determine what pleases the Lord. Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, expose them. It is shameful even to talk about the things that ungodly people do in secret. But their evil intentions will be exposed when the light shines on them, for the light makes everything visible. This is why it is said,

'Awake, O sleeper,
rise up from the dead,
and Christ will give you light.'"

--Ephesians 5:8-14

Tonight in small group we discussed 1 John 1:5-9 which reads, "This is the message we heard from Jesus[a] and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all. 6 So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness; we are not practicing the truth. 7 But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.

8 If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. 9 But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness."

In verses 5-7 I believe light is to be understood as truth and righteousness; darkness here is error and corruption. If we are in God's light then we are standing in His truth. The truth of His word, and His promises to us. Once we step out of His light we are in darkness which allows for sin to come in and corrupt our every being.

This darkness will cause us to have our shield and sword down, leaving us vulnerable to the enemy's attacks. To walk in light or darkness is to live according to God's truth or to Satan's lies. This is not merely done intellectually but morally. Fellowship with God and with one another consists in a life according to the truth as found in God and in Christ.

We must know God to find what His truth is. And knowledge only comes by the word of the Lord. The Bible.

In 1 John 8 and 9 and even 10, if we have denial of the condition of the sin that is in our lives, then we are self-deceiving ourselves and in ways even contradictory of divine revelation. This also brings to light the continual possibility of sin's recurrence in our lives. In order for us to be forgiven and delivered from sin through Christ Jesus, we must acknowledge the fact we are sinners, and ask for forgiveness.

This message hit home with a lot of guys in our small group tonight. If you are struggling with a particular sin, confess it to God and then someone whom you trust to hold you accountable. James 5:16 says, "Therefore, make it your habit to confess your sins to one another and to pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective."

Prayer: God please allow me to focus on what your word says and not on what I may want. Bring me into Your light and guide me to continually walk in Your way. I confess my sins to You with a heart of repentance. Let Your glory shine in me so that others may see and be healed. Amen.

It's Not About You

"Not until we have become humble and teachable, standing in awe of God's holiness and sovereignty... acknowledging our own littleness, distrusting our own thoughts, and willing to have our minds turned upside down, can divine wisdom become ours."

--James I (J. I.) Packer

I've been battling within myself a lot lately. I've been questioning a lot of decisions I've made and those that I choose not to. My friend Colin has been a huge support system for me lately.

God's using him to speak truth in my life. I like to be available to people and meet their needs whenever I can. To show them love like we (Christians) are suppose to. Colin wants to focus our Small Group on spiritual gifts.

One of my giftings is that of teaching. It's something that comes naturally to me, however, I don't want to use it. About two months ago I stepped down from leading our Small Group because I got "too busy". The fact was, I was too scared to continue doing it.

I had been a Small Group leader for years and I just didn't want to have that burden on me once again. I just want to help in other ways and not utilize my gift of teaching. Colin is a person who says what he feels God leading him to say, even if it's hard to swallow.

What he told me was really hard to swallow. In fact, I felt like I had tried to swallow a baseball. He told me that when people came to me for help and I gave it to them, it wasn't me providing it. It was God through me. He said that it wasn't all about me. I was just God's vessel in those situations.

A lot of things transpired during our conversation that dug deep into my heart and hurt. It hurt tremendously. No one had ever spoken to me the way he did. At first I was taken aback and thought, "I know he didn't just say that to me? Who does he think he is?"

After taking what he said into consideration, I realized he was spot on about everything. I know that God is string something in my soul bigger than I can imagine. I hope you continue to journey with me as I find what that something is.

I was reminded tonight after reading my bible, that we must die to our sins in order to be delivered from its power. We must read God's word to do this. To put on the armor of God and stand with a boldness and determination that Satan will not have a hold on any parts of our lives.

Stand with me because it's not about you!

Time Is

Too Slow for those who Wait,

Too Swift for those who Fear,

Too Long for those who Grieve,

Too Short for those who Rejoice,

But for those who Love,

Time is Eternity



Henry Van Dyke

I Am Second

A friend of mine, Korey at Scandalous Sanity, posted a blog about this site called "I Am Second" that I find very interesting.

It's a site that's designed to "help people discover their purpose in life." It's about people both famous and non. I really like the story of former "American Idol" contestant Jason Castro. Being as I'm a fan of his, I thought it cool to see him speak openly about his Christianity.

Please take some time to listen to the stories of why these people are second.

Thanks Korey for directing me to this site.

Click HERE to go directly to the site.

Christian Reality TV Arrives on Cable

There are three new Christian Reality TV shows that will be premiering on cable. These shows goals are to entertain while spreading the word about Christianity.

One show is called "The Uprising." This show is on the Inspirational Network,it stars three Christian pro skateboarders who bring Jesus to the world of skateboarding. "Revolve: Rockin' the Road" is another reality show that follows four people on the road of a Christian Rock festival.

You can read more about the shows HERE and see video and the home sites.

Men of Righteousness

"So we urged Titus, since he had earlier made a beginning, to bring also to completion this act of grace on your part. But just as you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us[a]—see that you also excel in this grace of giving. I am not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others."

--2 Corinthians 8:6-8

Every holiday season I dread receiving gifts. Not because I don't like what people give me, or I am afraid they will want something too. It's because I would much rather give than receive.


To me there is a joy in seeing someone else receive a gift that puts a smile on their face. I admire the gift that God's bestowed on my best friend Seth. He is a man who truly has the gift of giving. If he had only one shirt left in the world and he saw that you needed it, he'd take it off his back and give it to you.

I've learned so much from him in that area. God has allowed him to be humble in his actions and not losing himself along the way. The first present he ever gave me was the best I've ever received.

Tic tacs.

To you that may seem like a simple and easy gift to give. But the simplicity of it and the thoughtfulness behind it, meant the world to me. Seth new I was a die hard tic tac fan and he thought of me when he bought them. Gifts like that make me happy.

Seth is the most amazing guy you could ever meet. As of late I've been talking a lot about him to my new friends describing different scenarios that we've experienced. Sure he has his faults like everyone else, but he more than makes up for them with his kind heart.

Today guys, let's try to give in the spirit of the Lord. With, a mind of service and a heart of praise.

Feed My Starving Children

"Every one must study his own nature. Some of you can sustain life with less food than others can, and therefore I desire that he who needs more nourishment shall not be obliged to equal others, but that every one shall give his body what it needs for being an efficient servant of the soul. For as we are obliged to be on our guard against superfluous food which injures body and soul alike, thus we must be on the watch against immoderate fasting, and this the more, because the Lord wants conversion and not victims."

--Francis of Assisi

When fasting comes to the minds of most people, they think of fasting food. There are, however, more things that we can fast that will please God. I once fasted carbonated drinks because I felt that they were consuming me in every way. I also once fasted the internet. That was one of the toughest fasts I have ever done.

When you think about it, it shouldn't have been. In today's society the internet is what we live, breath, pay bills, and facebook on. My point in saying this is that fasting requires you to sacrifice something that you would normally do and spend some time with God or in His presence somehow.

Today, I fasted my time. Our small group volunteered at the organization "Feed My Starving Children." This was my second time doing this service project and it has touched my heart in ways words cannot express.

Feed My Starving Children (FMSC) is a Christian organization dedicated to feeding God's children throughout the world "by helping to instill compassion in a generation that hears and responds to the cries of those in need."

This is a terrific organization. After watching the videos of how many people they've helped feed, my heart swells with love for the children in those third world countries. As I said we volunteered at this place earlier in the summer and tonight we found out some horrible news.

After one of the shipments of food arrived at its destination, one of the militant groups who didn't want the people to have the food, burned it! They burned over a year's worth of food that could have feed an entire village.

When I heard that news my heart sank with disbelief. To know those kids would not be getting the food sent to them absolutely broke my heart.

Today we packed enough food to feed 51 people for an entire year. That's over 1500 meals! That's a village and a half! FMSC is more than just a Christian organization. It's a place where hope can be found in the faces of children who need it.

If you are able please donate to the organization today. $14 dollars can feed about 50 people for a day. That's worth it.


Omar - Before. When Omar arrived at malnourishment center in El Salvador, he was eight years old and incredibly fragile, weighing only 19 pounds.



Omar - After. After eating Feed My Starving Children food for one and a half months, he weighed 33 pounds. At two months, he weighed an astounding 40 pounds. Omar represents a life saved.


Malawi, Africa


Malawi, Africa

DO IT ANYWAY

People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies. Succeed anyway. If you are honest and sincere, people may deceive you. Be honest and sincere anyway.

What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight. Create anyway. If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous. Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, will often be forgotten. Do good anyway. Give the best you have, and it will never be enough. Give your best anyway.

In the final analysis, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.

--Mother Teresa

A long time coming

It has been a week since my last post and for that I apologize. This last week has been a very busy one for me and I will do what I can to make up for past posts. Between work, the holiday season, and spending time with new friends have all lead to my time as being limited. It will look as if I have posted everyday for the last week but that obviously is not the case. Just come back and look through for new posts.