Moving On

Man...it feels like the news gets worse with each passing day. And Katrina's aftermath is only entering its second day.

The mayor of New Orleans now says the death toll in his city alone could easily reach the thousands. Thousands. 110 people are confirmed dead in Mississippi, where its coastal cities like Biloxi actually took the main force of Katrina's winds and storm surge. Arial views over the city make you think you're seeing the battle damage from a war. Houses that aren't submerged by flood waters are completely demolished. Asphalt lies in shattered chunks, littering what's left of the streets. Power lines and lamp posts lay snapped in pieces. Big trucks and two-by-fours have been picked up like toys and slammed into buildings. People are wandering the streets looking totally lost, or walking into ruined stores (in clear view of police) and leaving with TVs, food packages, and bottles of water. A reporter actually stopped one looter and asked why he was doing it. "We've gotta eat somehow," he replied.

I was listening to HIS Radio, as usual, on my way to work this morning. All the commentary was about Katrina. To my surprise, Rob and Kristen (the morning crew) actually brought up the story about Harvey Jackon that I mentioned yesterday. Apparantly, when the account first aired, the news station covering it quickly cut away to a commercial break because the anchors needed to compose themselves. I can't help but wonder where Harvey and his grandkids (correction from yesterday: grandchildren, not children) are tonight, and if they're still all right.

But as heartbroken as I am about Katrina's wrath on the Gulf Coast, life must go on. I had to work the morning shift today because Kenneth, one of our co-workers, needed to take his kids to the dentist. It feels good to get busy working when I have a lot on my mind. It gives me something else to focus on, and I'm doing something. I hate sitting still on the job. I think I cooked two full birds of chicken to relieve my nerves. At least we had food.

My Mom called me at the end of my shift. She warned me that Greenville residents had heard a rumor that the city was going to run out of gas, resulting in people panicking and rushing to gas stations to fill up. She wanted to warn me to go ahead and get my fill before the city's supply of gas really does run out. It took me a little while to find a gas station that didn't have lines backed up onto the highway (seriously, what are some of these motorists thinking?) but I finally did. Hopefully, gas won't be an issue for awhile. Prices are at $2.99 a gallon and climbing.

Sorry I didn't post a song and verse yesterday.

Song of the Day: Point of Grace - "Better Days"

Verse of the Day: "And do this, understanding the present time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in orgies or drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourself with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature." - Romans 13:11-14

Aftermath

Today, New Orleans and the stricken Gulf Coast cities woke up to a harsh reality. Hurricane Katrina had struck. But the true nightmare was just beginning.

I've been watching The Weather Channel and CNN all evening, and I'm shocked. I've watched a lot of footage of hurricane aftermath in densely-populated cities. That includes Andrew, Hugo, Camille, Opal, Mitch, Ivan, the Labor Day Hurricane of 1935 ... you name it, I've seen it. None of that compared with the sheer devastation that Katrina inflicted on the Gulf Coast. My heart is breaking at the scenes that I'm watching from the comfort of my television and laptop. I haven't felt this awful, been so affected by such a disaster since the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Just when it seemed like New Orleans had dodged the bullet yet again (having been hit by Katrina's considerably weaker eastern flank), two of its protective levees burst today. That sent a torrent of water pouring into the city from Lake Pontchartrain and flooded the streets with as much as 20 feet of water. Eighty percent of the city has been submerged, and the water is still rising with nowhere to go. The pumps that get rid of floodwater have failed and won't be working again until emergency crews can repair the broken levees, which could take weeks. That means New Orleans could be dealing with floods for weeks or even months, escalating an already bad scenario.

One million people are without power across Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama; many don't even have clean water or proper sanitary conditions. People who ignored the mandatory evacuation order spent as much as 24 hours sitting on their rooftops (those lucky enough to still have roofs) awaiting helicopter rescue. Ambulances sat parked helplessly on interstates, water blocking their path. The sudden flooding in New Orleans prompted the evacuation of the relief shelters, including the Louisiana Superdome, which itself sustained noticable roof damage from Katrina's wind, lost power, air conditioning, and became unbearable with stopped toilets and putrid stench.

The Weather Channel website was one of many that became unavailable temporarily because of being inundated with requests and concerns for loved ones in the disaster. Jim Cantore, one of the storm crew members who was sent to Gulfport to cover the hurricane, took shelter in the Armed Forces Retirement home, which he described as "built like Fort Knox" and perfectly safe. They didn't count on Katrina's 30-foot storm surge that flooded the first floor of the home and forced Jim and the panicked residents to seek higher ground. That same surge brought down an entire beachfront apartment in Louisiana, burying an untold number of people under water and debris.

I can't describe my feelings right now. I watched a man named Harvey Jackson, both arms around his two boys, being interviewed by a reporter. He was talking and sobbing all at once because he'd lost his wife in the deadly floodwaters that destroyed their home. He was wandering the streets aimlessly with his kids with nowhere to go and no idea what to do. Just unbelievable. Seeing devastation like this on multiple levels ... I can't comprehend it.

What gets me most is that for these poor cities like New Orleans, Gulfport, and Biloxi, the real nightmare is just beginning. Now they have to find a way to keep on living with how Katrina has changed their lives permanently. Residents won't be able to go home for months. Thousands of people face up to two months without electricity. Prisoners of a New Orleans jail have to be re-located because of the floodwaters spilling into the prison facility. Precious supplies like food, water, and first-aid will become treasures people will fight and even kill each other for ownership. Martial law is already in effect for cities with looters running rampant in the face of this disaster; policemen and national guard are only now cracking down on the problem because they too are soaking this in.

You know, I put down all these facts, these statistics. Part of me feels heartless to think of them like that. But in all honesty, describing what happened and laying out my thoughts in words helps me to deal with tragedy of this scope. Prayer is also very theraputic. It's hard for me to understand God's will sometimes, especially when I see tragedies like this. The Oklahoma City bombing, Columbine High, September 11th, the South Asia tsunami, and now Katrina. So often, I'm on my knees asking "God, I don't understand. I don't know why You allow tragedy, death, and carnage to happen. It hurts so much..." And I'm not even a victim. I have no answers. I can't claim to know the mind of the Lord and what His plans are. To even try to do that is, I think, the height of arrogance and stupidity. Hard as it is, all I can do is accept that tragedy happens. We live in a fallen world, and we have no one but ourselves to blame. We are sinful and depraved, and in the big scheme of things, we deserve a fate far worse than anything Katrina can do. We deserve the depths of hell, but we have hope in the mercy and salvation from Jesus Christ. Times like this test our faith in Christ more than anything, but as difficult as it is, we are stronger for our suffering. When we suffer in Christ's name, we can do nothing but rejoice.

If you are reading this, I ask you, please pray for the displaced residents of the Gulf Coast. Pray for those who have lost loved ones and property in the flood waters. Pray for those who must spend another agonizing night on damp, crumbling rooftops waiting to be rescued. Pray for those evacuating the Superdome and the other shelters to go who knows where. Pray for those in shocked, dazed states who haven't yet come to grips with the reality of what's happened to them. Pray for the rescue workers, nurses, doctors, and repair crews who are out there putting their lives on the line to help people, clear debris, coordinate relief efforts, and patch the damaged levees. Don't just do this offhand or mention it in passing. Take significant time to lift these people up to God. Prayer is powerful, and it works miracles, great and small. Don't ever take for granted what it means to pray for someone.

If you feel led to help relief efforts in the aftermath of Katrina, here are some organizations you can look into. A donation, no matter how big or small, can go a long way toward helping to provide residents with water, food, medicine, insurance, long-term recovery plans, and so much more. Please consider helping with one of these:

American Red Cross
https://www.redcross.org/donate/donation-form.asp

Catholic Charities USA
http://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org

Charity Hospital (in New Orleans)
1532 TULANE AVENUE
NEW ORLEANS, LA 70112

Habitat for Humanity (New Orleans)
http://www.habitat-nola.org

Hearts With Hands
http://www.heartswithhands.org

Noah's Wish
PO BOX 997
PLACERVILLE , CA 95667

Operation Blessing (I did this one)
http://www.ob.org

Samaritan's Purse
http://www.samaritanspurse.org


To all of those affected by Katrina, my prayers are with you. As little as I can do, God can do infinitely more. May his strength and peace help and comfort you in the days to come.

Another Katrina Update

Huge praise report.

Kat Garber, a friend of mine who recently moved to New Orleans after graduating from Furman, is safe. She evacuated before Katrina got there and as far as I know, she's back here in Greenville. Her belongings are in a first-floor apartment, so the prospects for salvaging don't look too good unless her particular area was spared. But things can be replaced; she can't. I'm just glad to know she's all right. Thank you, Jesus, for keeping her safe.

Update on Katrina

Hurricane Katrina is making landfall as I type this. The storm has weakened slightly, down to category 4 strength with sustained winds of 150 mph, but it appears that's as far down as it'll go before it rolls ashore. The Weather Channel is buzzing with reports out of the Gulf Coastal region as Katrina's massive eye wall roars toward land. I heard a report of a 114 mph wind gust out of Grand Isle. Power has gone out in Biloxi, Mississippi and near Gulf Port and Covington as the transformers are blowing everywhere; the blue flashes I've seen in the backgrounds of the live video feeds are unmistakably them. Reports of tornado warnings are flying in coastal counties including Orleans (where, obviously, New Orleans is located) and just north of Mobile, Alabama. Frankly, I'm surprised the storm crew is still able to broadcast with conditions deteriorating as rapidly as they are. I'm watching storm chaser Jim Cantore reporting from the Armed Forces Retirement Home in Gulfport. Only minutes ago, the back drop was fairly tranquil; only light rain and gusty winds. Now, it's a deluge of cascading water and wind blowing so hard it shrieks. Jeff Morrow and Mike Seidel have moved farther inland; no report on Stephanie Abrams and her whereabouts yet. Here's hoping she's safe because we're only just starting to see the worst of this hurricane.

Please continue to pray for the residents of the Gulf Coast, especially those who weren't able to evacuate from New Orleans for a host of reasons. Pray also for the people living in inland regions like Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee. Just because Katrina strikes land on the Gulf Coast doesn't mean the threat is over. They'll be next in line to receive a beating from her pounding rain, winds still at tropical storm and maybe even hurricane force, and isolated tornadoes. This is a catastrophic event on the scale of Camille and Andrew that is sure to change the lives of those living in New Orleans forever. While you're praying, thank God that you're not down there having to escape or survive the fury of nature. If you've survived a hurricane like this, you never forget it.

The Big Hundred On...Ah, Forget It

Congrats to my brother Baxter and his baseball team. They played a series of games this weekend and finished a win away from the championship. Baxter pitched six strong innings Friday night and struck out five or six batters. They ended up losing the final game in the weekend series by one run this morning, but still had a great showing.

The only drawback is that both Baxter and my Mom picked up some kind of fever over the weekend. It doesn't look serious, but those are never fun. Please pray that their health will improve soon.

Well, the Gulf Coast is under fire yet again. This time, it's Hurricane Katrina taking aim at landfall somewhere on the shore between Louisiana and Mississippi. It's a category 5 monster, packing winds of 175 mph and minimum central pressure of 902 mb (which equates to 26.67 inches of mercury). That's staggering. Camille in 1969 was the last hurricane to even approach that low a pressure gradient. And Katrina's bigger and stronger than Camille at peak intensity. If it continues on its forecasted track, it will bring the eye of the hurricane dangerously close to New Orleans early tomorrow morning. And because the city sits below sea level, almost comparable to a bowl surrounded by bodies of water, the 25-foot storm surge could drown it. I pray that the Gulf Coastal residents are taking this thing seriously and get out of there if they haven't done so already. That includes those brave Weather Channel storm chasers like Stephanie Abrams, Jim Cantore, and Jeff Morrow who are down there reporting the conditions and giving updates. Their job really takes a lot of guts when you think about it. Keep safe, everyone!

I can't believe it'll be time to move back to Furman a week from today. I haven't even started getting my things together yet. Looks like I'll have to start bringing those empty fry boxes home from work again. Only this time, I won't make the mistake of leaving them in my car. I did that the last time I used them for packing, and they made my car stink like a fish factory. Bleh.

I suppose that's all for today. I guess I'll go back to watching Katrina and soaking up my last week of being at home. How will I soak it up? By doing absolutely nothing? Hmm ... interesting idea. It bears investigation. ^_^

Song of the Day: Reuben Morgan - "I Give You My Heart"

Verse of the Day: "You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things." - Romans 2:1

The Big Hundred

Well, what do you know? My 100th post.

Who would've thought back on December 10, 2004 that this humble little journal would become a place I could freely state my opinions and put my thoughts into long rambles? Not me, that's for sure. It just kind of happened.

I'd kept a written journal since fifth grade back when I lived in Brentwood, TN. I remember that I'd had lots of preparation for it in third and fourth grades when I'd do journals for class. I always tried to write 100 words. That goal eventually grew to 200, then 300, then 500, and so on. But those don't count. They were assignments. A real journal is one of the few outlets you can use to pour out your thoughts, feelings, and frustrations. And the best thing about it? You're the only authority. No one else reads it but you (unless of course, you have snooping siblings who like to break into your desk drawers and sneek little peeks at it while you're away at Furman...) No one else critiques it but you. That somehow makes journal-writing an activity to look forward to by day's end.

I got the notion to keep up a real journal from Beverly Cleary's award-winning book Dear Mr. Henshaw. It's about a boy named Leigh Botts who writes letters to his favorite childhood author, and he's inspired by him to develop his own written work by starting a journal. Towards the end of the book, he writes a description for a school literature contest about a day on his Dad's rig, during which they hauled loads of grapes to a refinery and capped it off at a gas station drinking coffee, hanging with his dad's trucking buddies, and playing all of the game machines. He receives an honorable mention for his work and gets to have lunch with a real author, who tells him that she actually read his story and enjoyed it very much. The reason for that is because, to use her own words, "You wrote like you." I try to keep that in mind whenever I sit down to write something, whether it's my journal, an essay for class, or a note to a friend. When I write, I want to use my own voice and not someone else's. My wordy and long-winded style might make some people nod off, but it's my style and I like it. That's what counts.

So anyway, I kept up the written journal from fifth grade until the end of my senior year in high school. I meant to keep it going through college, but somehow it felt different. I couldn't explain it; I still can't, but it seemed like the transition from grade school to college demanded some kind of change in the ways I express myself. Around this time, I was starting to come out of my shell of shyness and self-conscious nature around other people (I continue to work at this and will likely keep working at it for a long time); I wasn't anywhere near as shy about being open about my thoughts as I once was. I desired some new form of expression with words, but I didn't know what.

That desire kept dancing in my head until the end of fall term in my sophomore year (don't worry; I have no wish to recap freshman year, as that would push even my level of rambling to new heights). I was buckled down with exams, my mother was getting ready to have a hysterectomy (and though I didn't know it when I started this, an emergency appendectomy before that), and I needed a distraction. I needed something that could not only work as an outlet for my thoughts, but be accessible to any passerby interested in taking the time to read it. And then I realized I could take that a step further. I could use my journal as a means of outreach, talking about what Jesus has done in my heart and the many ways he has blessed me and challenged me. I hesitate to think of it along the same lines as a devotional because this is nothing but my personal thoughts. It just doesn't fit right, you know? I mean, I still write this because it helps me. If someone else likes what I put down, then praise be to God for that.

So along came Blogger, and the Paladin's Temple was born. I didn't spend very much time deciding on a name for my journal. I'm a Furman Paladin, so that's half of it right there. I tossed around names such as Abode, Lair, Cavern, and Fortress before I finally settled on Temple. I don't even know why. The name just clicked with me.

Anyway, I've probably spent enough time reflecting on the history of my journals past and present to merit this as a special 100th post. Yes, I know; by all counts the number is empty and devoid of any meaning, but hey, I'm in a reflective mood. Thank you, Blogger, for providing this space on the internet for me to ramble on to my heart's content. Thank you to everyone who's stopped by, whether I know you or not, and extra thanks to those of you who've taken the time to leave a comment; I appreciate those.

And thank you, Lord Jesus. Thank you for dying on the cross to spare me the agony and the excrutiating torment that you endured. Thank you for conquering sin and death when I couldn't do it alone. Thank you for loving and forgiving me despite how many times I've failed to do the same. Thank you for filling me with Your Holy Spirit to use me as your vessel for love and service to others. I pray that I will be more receptive to Your Spirit each and every day. I pray that I won't let an opportunity go by to share Your message of love and truth. I love you Lord. Thank you for loving me first and always. It's in the name of your son, Jesus Christ, that I pray. Amen.

Song of the Day: Casting Crowns - "If We Are the Body"

Verse of the Day: "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." - Galatians 5:1

Too Much "Stuff"

Do You Need Stuff?
from Collegiate Magazine

"Is getting more "stuff" always a reasonable goal? Henry David Thoreau spent the better part of his life writing about man's attempt to find truth and meaning through simplified living. At some point he discovered he could live within the harmony and beauty of nature, with a clear conscience, and only work six weeks a year to support his lifestyle.

"Henry found it difficult to find a teaching job that matched his style, so he worked briefly in his father's pencil factory. At age 28, Thoreau built a small house on Walden Pond and began to devote his time to his writing. Advocating the simple life, his "Walden" journey began with: "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately..."

"And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years." - Abraham Lincoln.

"This does not describe the typical journey of a college graduate today. Rather, the expectation is an immediate six-figure income and the lifestyle that accompanies "success." We live in a society that embraces indulgent consumption as a visible status symbol. The fabulous house tells everyone that you have arrived, even if it takes two incomes and being trapped in an infulfilling job to make it work. The house then sets the expectations for the country club membership, private schools for the children, and attendance at the right social events. We work longer hours to pay for the new "stuff," then have less time to enjoy it. We plead with God to bless us, but the only relief from the self-imposed pressure would be to win the lottery.

"Where do we draw the line on consumption if we can afford the extras? Do you really need all of the house you qualify for? Should we really thank God for providing when we finance a car purchase equal to an annual income? Is a vacation in the Caribbean that much more satisfying than spending a week on a needy Indian reservation? Is it truly God's will that we buy into the bondage of debt? How can we give generously when payments are overdue?

"Perhaps, like Thoreau, we could take time to savor the beauty of nature around us and to smell the fresh roses of everyday life. "Simplify, simplify."

"I went to the woods to live deliberately, to confront only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived." - Henry David Thoreau


I won't add too much commentary because in my opinion, the article speaks for itself. It makes me recall a part of Mr. Sell's keynote speech from high school graduation:

As you get your education, begin careers, and establish yourselves in life, don’t forget the things that matter most. I hope that each of you is successful in every way imaginable but don’t settle for making lots of money, having possessions, or becoming influential people in the community. Our world recognizes those who are rich, beautiful, and powerful. Strive for something more. Strive for something better. In all that you do, keep a heart for eternity. Don’t let your plans end with your death. "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treaures in heaven." (Matthew 6:19-20)

Song of the Day: Michael W. Smith - "Above All"

Verse of the Day: Matthew 6:19-20 (see above)

Going Retro

I wore the crimson red Chick-Fil-A shirt to work today. There wasn't any reason for it, really. I just noticed it folded up in my closet and figured, why not? It's not like we have a rule saying you can only wear one fashion brand of shirt. As long as it's recognizable and has our restaurant logo on it somewhere, it's fair game as far as the managers are concerned. So I wore it. The shirt raised a few eyebrows at work; I guess the Haywood CFA hasn't ever used that shirt or else it doesn't have anyone who remembers it, but no one said anything. I'm glad. The classic ensemble of grey shirt and black pants remains my favorite dress attire, but I have a soft spot for the crimson red shirt. Surprisingly, it doesn't feel much hotter than the grey even though it should because of the darker color and the different fabric. I guess I'm just at the point where things like that don't register with me anymore. Besides, I get hot and dirty at work no matter what I'm wearing.

So, if you haven't tuned out after that oh-so-boring introduction...

I can't wait for Clemson football to begin in just over a week. I'll be going to the Texas A&M game on Saturday September 3rd with Susannah and Amanda. It will be my first time attending a game without my parents there. I might have to work during the day, but it's a night game; won't start until 8:00. So that gives us plenty of time to get to Death Valley and tailgate before going inside. I'll have to start thinking about what kinds of food to bring.

And just in case you're thinking, "Wait a minute. Aren't you a Furman student?" Yes, I am also eagerly looking forward to the kickoff of Furman football. We've got a great team this year, and I'm excited about our chances. Our quarterback, Ingle Martin, who transferred here from Florida, even made the cover of Sports Illustrated magazine. That's cool. It's also fun to be ranked #1 in Division I-AA, even if I-A college football fans don't care.

I love purple as one of my school's colors. That way, I can feel perfectly content to be a Clemson and Furman fan at the same time!

Song of the Day: Point of Grace - "You Are the Answer"

Verse of the Day: "Lord, You establish peace for us; all that we have accomplished You have done for us!" -Isaiah 26:12

Time to Decompress

It's been said that Furman students absolutely despise the month of August. Their friends from other colleges are back in class, and they still have a few weeks to go. Most of their summer activities are completed. So their lives shift into cruise control and they stew in boredom with nothing to do but wait out the remainder of their vacation.

I've learned an important lesson about this, a lesson that Rodney drove home at Palmetto Bible Camp yesterday. There's nothing wrong with staying busy and involved, but it's just as important to take a step back now and then to process everything. And by that, I mean taking advantage of the inevitable lull in your busy schedule to let your mind soak in the things you've done, people you've met and talked with, how you've grown and changed, things like that. If you don't take the time to decompress a bit, then, in my opinion, it's much easier to burn yourself out. You're constantly thinking that you're on the go, hitting the gas pedal at every turn (pardon the overuse of vehicle expressions), but before you know it, you're running on empty with still many more miles in front of you. Taking the time to sit back, let your mind catch up and process all the things you've done is like putting fresh fuel in your tank. It refreshes your perspective because you not only see, but understand your work and what it all means to you and to others. It's a helpful technique to keep in mind when your tank's running low and you need a pit stop.

Okay - I'll stop with the vehicle terminology now. I promise. :)

As you can probably tell from my rambling, today was pretty uneventful. Which I'm grateful for because there's that chance to decompress. I'll be extra grateful for days like this a month from now when things get uber-busy and I'll hardly be able to find a moment's peace.

TJ Cofield, a friend of mine from Furman, joined Blogger a short while back, but I only just discovered his blog today. So welcome, TJ :) You can find his blog in my Links section. It's called "Between My Ears." Cute title.

Song of the Day: Rhea Miller - "I'd Rather Have Jesus"

Verse of the Day: "Therefore, my brothers, you also were put to death in relation to the law through the crucified body of the Messiah, so that you may belong to another - to Him who was raised from the dead - that we may bear fruit for God." - Romans 7:4

The Gameplan

Wow. First time in weeks I've gone a couple days without a new post. I had a good reason! Promise!

Yesterday and today, my time was valuably spent at Palmetto Bible Camp with my awesome Furman friends on the BCM Leadership Team. It was great to see everyone together again; a few of them, I'd seen sparingly from summer BCM at Rodney's and Chris & EA's wedding. But anyway, we had a great time being together and just growing closer as a real team united to do God's will. We opened in a word of prayer and shared experiences in our summer missions work. I got to hear some incredible tales about God's work in their lives over the past few months. I heard for the first time about Dawn's work in D.C., Jon at Camp McCall, Jessie in Mexico... amazing how many opportunities God laid down at our feet this summer to go out and serve, sharing His Good News in love, testimony, and fellowship. So many places that are starved for that love. It feels so overwhelming at times.

After we shared, we spent a good bit of time in prayer. If you had just walked into that cabin and overheard us, I believe you would have felt the presence of the Holy Spirit. I felt it moving about us and within us as we cried out to the Lord for guidance and wisdom in the planning and decisions that needed to be made over the 24 hours to follow. So many requests we lifted up to God, it'd be impossible for me to hit them all. The incoming freshmen at Furman. Our new responsibilities as L-Team members. Personal struggles going on in our lives. Prayers for our friends like Paul who is going to Francis Marion, and Dawn who will be in Versailles, France for most of the fall. Oh wow. Thinking about it, I felt God's presence even more strongly, if that's possible, when we weren't talking, but just being silent. I feel like that's one thing we don't do enough of when we pray. I'm not against crying out to God and sharing openly our blessings and requests; I bring those before Him every day. But it's just as important to be silent, to just close our mouths and listen, really listen, to what the Holy Spirit has to say. Prayer is far from a one-way communication on our part. We have to be alert to what God is trying to tell us, and what better time to hear from Him than when we're on our knees in prayer, all distractions aside? I don't want to pray just to hear myself speak. My words mean nothing if I don't expect to encounter God and believe that He hears my prayers. More often than not, I find myself wanting to quit talking when I pray and be quiet so I can give the Holy Spirit a chance to come down and invade my heart. There's no telling what God might choose to tell me. Or maybe He won't. All the same, I feel we should make the effort to truly seek God in prayer, so that we might feel the kind of supernatural presence the believers of the church of Acts felt when their dwelling place was shaken as if by a mighty earthquake. They made contact with heaven. Who says the Holy Spirit can't do something like that now?

Psalm 46:10 - "Be still, and know that I am God..."
Ecclesiastes 3:1,7b - "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven ... a time to be silent and a time to speak."

From then on, most of our time was spent planning and mapping out our agenda for the year, scheduling special events and such. I'll be moving in along with most of the team on Sunday, September 4th, so we'll be working on projects that whole week for the incoming freshmen. We've got a luncheon planned for Thursday in the Gauntlet, a survival night for the following Monday night (before classes the next day), and of course, the first TNT of the year on Tuesday night. I feel like we accomplished a lot of things in the past couple of days, laying on the table our views and vision for our positions, how we can work together to glorify God in what we're going to do, and keeping all egos out of it. After all, this is God's will we seek; we're just the vessels He's going to work through.

I'm officially pumped up for junior year. :)

Song of the Day: Darrell Evans - "Let the River Flow"

Verse of the Day: "The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else." - Acts 17:24-25

Let's Talk About Heaven

I love how Doug Blackburn phrased this. "I think Heaven has been terribly secularized by our media today. If I bring up Heaven, what's the first image they think of? People in robes sitting on clouds listening to a 24-hour gospel station while strumming the harp all day? Where does that come from? It's ridiculous and it doesn't even begin to describe the glory and majesty of God's Kingdom that we as believers will one day experience forever!"

Why don't so many Christians want to talk about Heaven? Why is it so easy for them to get caught up in things of the world, materialism, and other temporary items that they don't consider how wide and unfathomable God's Kingdom is compared to them? I guess the simplest answer is just that. Heaven is a place we don't know every detail about. We can't comprehend something we haven't experienced, so the only way we can begin to grasp it is by comparing it with what we have experienced. And what we have experienced is a bitter and dying world in the grip of corruption and sin. We face Satan's temptations every day, every waking moment of our lives. Those who are slaves to sin are either unaware of what it's doing to their hearts or on their knees crying for a way out.

What's Heaven compared to that? It's Revelation 21:3-4. "God's dwelling is with men, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will exist no longer; grief, crying, and pain will exist no longer, because the previous things have passed away."

Heaven is our ultimate and final reward for trusting in the blood of Jesus. It is the majestic dwelling place of God Almighty, and it was made known to us through the temple and tabernacle, through Jesus Christ, and through the Holy Spirit. Paul said in Phillipians 3:20 that our citizenship is in Heaven, where we eagerly await our Savior who will transform our lowly bodies to be like his glorious body. For me, it puts the idea of death in a whole different perspective. I want to live each day of my life with my final destination in mind. Everything that surrounds me on Earth will eventually fade away. Titles, honors, recognitions, and accomplishments are all nice, but they can't hold a candle to our inheritence in eternity. Just how amazing is that? To live forever in the presence of God and all of His children, with no more worries, no more disease, no more pain, and no more death. We'll know nothing but pure joy and happiness as we worship God, having accepted the living water that Jesus offered. What a gift!

When we have this gift, we no longer fear death. That's where the hope comes from in the believers who grieve. I felt that hope when my grandfather died, and so did my family. We knew he'd taken his last breath here on this Earth, but he was also taking his first breath in the Kingdom of God. Because Christ conquered death, we need no longer fear it. Paul knew when he faced trial and death that he'd been faithful to his call, and so he was ready to face it. In 2 Timothy 4:18, Paul said "the Lord will rescue me from every evil attack, and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen." I find comfort in knowing that even as I encounter the struggles of this world, and keep the faith, it will all be worth it when I meet Jesus Christ.

I don't know how people can read these verses and still manage to hold onto that pink cloud & harp nonsense. That's not Heaven at all; not even close.

Now as I write this, I don't want anyone to think I'm selling out on life. I don't plan on shutting away in my room and waiting for my time. That's the easy way out. I'm sold out to God, and I want to spend all of my days living for Him. There are so many opportunities out there to show other people the love of Christ and the difference it makes. And I haven't even scratched the surface. God has lots of work and service in store for those who follow Him; to live as the salt and light in a fallen world. However long or short my life will be, I want to live and die safe in the knowledge that my Lord and Savior is waiting for me in Heaven. That's what I call victorious living.

Song of the Day: Matt Redman - "Facedown"

Verse of the Day: "Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that , though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us." - 1 Peter 2:11-12

Stopping Evil Stone Cold

"Huh?" you ask. Let me explain...

If you haven't glanced at my Links section yet, which is still fairly new to the Temple as I've only recently learned how to modify the HTML settings for my template, you may notice something peculiar about the third link. It sort of sticks out from the others, which are all about real-life stuff like Furman, BCM, my favorite artists and my all-time favorite cable channel (I hear you snickering out there. But when a tornado threatens your community, you'll be thankful to have the Weather Channel and its severe weather alerts to warn you. Mark my words). Yes, I've devoted my third link to what can now be considered an age-old fascination of mine: Disney's Gargoyles.

Now I don't normally consider myself a cartoon person, unless you count shows like Cartoon Network's Justice League Unlimited, which I hesitate to place in the same category sometimes. But when I was a kid, I enjoyed tuning in to all sorts of fun, enjoyable cartoons. I can remember sitting on the floor laughing out loud at Bonkers, thrilling to the non-stop adventure of Aladdin, and soaking in classics like Doug, Looney Tunes, and Mighty Mouse. Thinking back, I enjoyed cartoons like these purely because they entertained me. All they had to do was make me laugh and throw lots of wild 'n crazy, high-octane action at me. Hey, I'm a guy. What do you expect?

Then in 1994...

One thousand years ago,
Superstition and the sword ruled.
It was a time of darkness.
It was a world of fear.
It was the age...of Gargoyles

Created by Greg Wiseman, it was heralded as a cartoon with a far more serious bent. Dark, moody atmosphere. Continuity. Characters that grew and changed over time. Consistently high-quality animation. Such things were all but underheard of for cartoons at that time. So Gargoyles broke the mold in more ways than one for television.

The basic backstory is this: gargoyles once lived among humans a thousand years ago. Stone by day, they would break out of their shells at night. They possessed superhuman strength, eyes that glowed when angered, and their wings helped them glide on currents of wind. And all gargoyles are driven by one desire, one mantra: protection.

Back in 994 A.D. a clan of gargoyles lived among a race of people in Wyvern, Scotland. Led by their powerful but noble leader Goliath (Gargoyles did not have names, but Goliath's name was given to him by the humans. He reminded the captain of the guard of the Philistine Goliath who fought David), they aided the humans in driving off invasions by the Vikings. The two races held a mutual relationship of trust and protection but not quite friendship. Humans protected the gargoyles in stone sleep during the day, and the gargoyles protected the humans at night.

But one tragic night of betrayal changed things forever. The captain of the guard set the Vikings up to launch an assault against castle Wyvern in broad daylight, negating the aid of the gargoyles. In one fateful siege, the castle was overtaken, and Hakon, leader of the Vikings, smashed the gargoyle statues to rubble. Only Goliath, three adolescent gargoyles, his mentor, and a gargoyle beast were left out of the entire clan. And in a dreadful act of misunderstanding, the castle's royal sorcerer, the Magus, cast a spell over the remaining gargoyles that kept them frozen in stone "until the castle rises above the clouds." And so they slumbered for a thousand years.

Fast forward to 1994. Muli-billionaire industrialist David Xanatos purchases the ancient Castle Wyvern and has it placed, stone for stone, gargoyle for gargoyle, atop his skyscraper. Having been fascinated by the legend of the gargoyles and desiring to see if the Magus' words held true, he saw to it that the castle stood above the clouds. And indeed the Magus was right. The terms of the spell fulfilled, the gargoyle clan awoke from stone, only to find themselves in a century where no one remembers them and nothing save for the castle remains of their past life. To better integrate themselves, each member of the clan selected a name, with Goliath keeping his given name. We had Brooklyn, a red-skinned gargoyle with a pronounced beak and a love for adventure and wise cracks. We had Broadway, a large, portly gargoyle with a penchant for detective stories and a knack for cooking and eating. We had Lexington, an olive-colored web-winged gargoyle with a childlike innocence and technologically gifted. We had Hudson, Goliath's mentor and former leader of the clan, who took a prompt liking to television. We had Bronx, the gargoyle beast. Rounding out the good guys was Elisa Maza, a human and friend to the clan.

Thus, we have the premise for Gargoyles. So what made this show special to me?

1. Believable characters. Each gargoyle was different, each had his flaws and insecurities that made them fun to watch and rounded them out. Goliath was regarded as the leader, but he wasn't perfect. He could be stubborn and rash sometimes in his decisions. Lexington learned the hard way that you have to be careful who you trust. Brooklyn was quick to try out the marvels of the 20th century, but his impetuous nature got him into scrapes in society's inner circles. Broadway's fascination with guns was curbed when he accidently shot Elisa, and nearly killed her. These were full-blooded characters, not caricatures. They had their shining moments, and plenty of not-so-shining moments. They grew and changed as time went on. They learned from their mistakes, and we watched them learn. I like to root for good guys that have visible chinks in their armor.

2. Complex storytelling. Forget mindless filler. Every single episode of Gargoyles mattered and reflected back to an ongoing thread in the show. Stories began and kept on going. An episode could spin three or four plot threads at a time without feeling rushed. The rich, intricate continuity between episodes became a hallmark of the series. It felt like you were watching something more than a mere cartoon. The creators went for the throat on gripping storylines. In the five-part "Awakening" premiere, the clan is betrayed not once but twice when they discover that Xanatos has been using them along with Demona, Goliath's former love. "Deadly Force" is still what I consider to be the best handling of the issue of gun control I've seen on television. Several episodes are laced with influences from Shakespeare, keeping with the Scottish theme (one of the Gargoyles' enemies is actually named Macbeth). But the stories could also approach the audience on a softer, more introspective level, such as when Hudson and Broadway are inspired to learn how to read by a blind man named Jeffrey Robbins. Nicely balanced storytelling.

3. Breathtaking animation. Before the time of CGI in cartoons, Gargoyles enhanced its world with some of the best animation I've ever seen. The animators of Walt-Disney Japan without a doubt did the best work. Objects had mass and depth, the detail work was incredible, and characters moved with a fluid grace while still keeping their solid appearance. You want an example? Watch episodes like "The Edge" (The Gargoyles fight Xanatos' exoframe and the Steel Clan) and "Shadows of the Past" (Goliath faces ghosts from his past) and see how great the animation is. Other studios that did commendable work included Koko Animation, Dong Yang, Animal-Ya, Sunwoo, Seoul Movie Company, and Toon City. But WD-Japan definitely set the bar for high-quality animation.

4. Element of surprise. Gargoyles constantly took me off guard with the twists and swerves that came up in the stories that set them apart from the traditional cartoons. After the premiere, Xanatos is sent to prison, and the Gargoyles have their castle again...only to be forced out three episodes later when Xanatos completes his term. Macbeth and Demona have hints of a shared history that is revealed in season 2, and suddenly you start to see why she holds malice toward all humanity. The creators weren't afraid to change the format of the entire series with the Avalon World Tour arc that took Goliath, Elisa, Angela and Bronx around the globe for 22 episodes! It's this ability to throw curveballs that I never saw coming that made Gargoyles so captivating to watch unfold.

5. Villain variety. Heroes are only as good as their villains, and this show made quite a statement upon that fact. Xanatos is far more than a corporate bad guy with exoframe armor. He actually has genuine goals and desires, and he's forced to re-think a lot of his ways when he gets married and has a child. Demona is easy to pass off as nothing more than an angry Gargoyle who hates humans and blasts anything that gets in her way...until you watch "City of Stone" and really see how she came to be the way she is. The Gargoyles also took the Batman route by tangling with the NYC underworld, fighting mobsters like Tony Dracon and even the fabled Illuminati Society, of which Xanatos was a part-time member. We saw other Gargoyle amalgamations like Coldstone, reborn out of a mix of science and sorcery, and Thailog, a clone of Goliath who could be more cunning and manipulative than Xanatos. At times, the villains were so fun and interesting to watch that it made me forget the title of the show.

All these things made Gargoyles a joy to watch. Even though the show had a regrettable ending (it was placed on ABC in 1996 and renamed "Gargoyles: The Goliath Chronicles," but it lost most of the original staff, and it went downhill from there), I still have lots of fond memories and stuff that I took from it. To me, Gargoyles proves that cartoons can do more than entertain for the sake of entertainment. They can engage their audience, make people think, do swerves in the storytelling, and provide an experience worthy of live-action drama. It's a cartoon that kids will have no trouble enjoying, but adults can get something out of it also. That's a sign of real staying power.

Stone by day, warriors by night
We were betrayed by the humans we had sworn to protect
Frozen in stone by a magic spell for a thousand years.

Now here in Manhattan,
The spell is broken ... and we live again!

We are defenders of the night.
We are Gargoyles!


Song of the Day: Chris Tomlin - "The Wonderful Cross"

Verse of the Day: "Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness." - James 3:18

Run of the House

Well, my parents are away for the weekend. They're traveling with Baxter's baseball team on the road for some games (I don't remember the city). So for the next couple of days, it's just Susannah, me, and Izzy. Not that I've much time here to enjoy it. I went in to work at 3:00 PM and didn't get home until about 10:45. We had a few different people working the Friday night shift because we've lost quite a few of the old guard on the roster to college. Seeing as how Friday night is typically the busiest night of the week, that all but guarantees some rough patches. But we managed all right. I think I overstocked us on food, but that's the rush for you. Can't predict it.

By the way, thank you for praying for our manager at Chick-Fil-A who was experiencing chest pains. I worked with him today, and he's feeling much better.

Earlier this week, I finished reading Tribulation Force, the second novel in the Left Behind series. It's excellent! I am officially on the prowl for the rest of the books.

I don't have too much else to say. I'm feeling pretty tapped out in every sense of the expression. So I suppose I'll bid you all farewell, wherever you fare, until next time.

Song of the Day: Michael W. Smith - "Missing Person"

Verse of the Day: "Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you." - Psalm 9:10

Health Issues

Oh, boy. Maybe it's just me being needlessly paranoid. But it seems like everybody I know these days is coming down with some sickness or ailment.

Three days ago, my mother went to the doctor for a checkup to make sure she was progressing from last year's hysterectomy. She is, but now there's a new problem. She's been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. It's still in the early stages, but that's not good news at all. It explains the pain and aching in her joints lately when she climbs the stairs or gets out of bed in the morning.

On the same day, my dad fell halfway down our garage ladder while trimming the hedges. No broken bones, but he developed a really bad sore throat from it. For a while, he was actually wondered if it was tonsillitis, which is a rarity among adults, but as it turned out, it was a case of his glands becoming swollen from the fall. Thankfully, his ailment seems to be improving with time.

At work today, one of our managers started having chest pains about two hours into the mid-afternoon rush. We made him leave the backbar and sit down inside the office to rest. Chest pains are not something to mess around with. Nevertheless, he was soon back working register and backbar. None of my tries to make him slow down were successful, so I settled for keeping a close eye on him. Sigh. I hope he'll be okay tomorrow...

Also at work, Jamie, a fellow employee, had to leave around noon with her mom to see her doctor. Apparantly, she has a problem with her knee as a result of a skating accident, or so I heard. Coupled with the fact that she came in looking and sounding like she hadn't slept a wink, I'm amazed she came back just as my shift finished.

And just recently, I found out that one of my friends at church has been diagnosed with leukemia. He'd gone on a mission trip to Alaska, but had to come home when he became sick. Leukemia claimed the life of another one of my close friends from church two years ago, so it's hard to see this happening again to another friend.

So anyway, it's safe to say my prayer list is pretty full right now. Please remember them. Also continue to keep Taylor and his family in your prayers. Thank you so much.

Song of the Day: Tim Hughes - "Beautiful One"

Verse of the Day: "Know also that wisdom is sweet to your soul; if you find it, there is a future hope for you." - Proverbs 24:14

Prayer Request

Okay, I don't have much to say tonight, but I do have one huge prayer request. For anyone reading this, please pray for my friend Taylor. He's just lost his great uncle to heart failure, and it kind of took him by surprise...Man. When you lose someone that close to you, it feels like a part of you is gone with them. Like a piece of your heart goes numb and doesn't feel normal again for a long time. But I've talked briefly with Taylor, and he and his family seem all right, all things considered. But please, please keep them in your prayers. Just knowing that someone is praying for you means far, far more than what words can say. I know, because at times like this, I just feel that words are so empty. They can't bring your loved ones back, and they don't make it any easier to deal with the pain. But prayer and keeping focused on the hope that God provides works miracles for a grieving heart. Truly.

Song of the Day: DC Talk - "Into Jesus"

Verse of the Day: "Hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." - Romans 5:5

On the Edge

Remember what I said yesterday about the book Left Behind keeping me occupied for a while? I was wrong. I settled down to read at 9:30 last night, and I ended up finishing the book at 2:00 AM. How's that for engaged?

But wow. Rarely do I find a book that so draws me in that I feel like I've been taken out of my room and into the environment the book depicts. Left Behind is uber-powerful, gripping, and soul-penetrating. I could identify with every character in the book, and the context of the actual story just makes me love it that much more. I love the message that it leaves me with. Even if you're not interested in following the saga to its conclusion, it will still leave you with the message of a sense of urgency. We don't know when Christ will return to the Earth or when we will experience the tribulation period foretold in Revelation, and it's not our place to concern ourselves with the time table God has set. Only He knows. But in the meantime, we need to live each day of our lives on guard, ready.

The day of the Lord will come like a thief, when we don't expect it. And yet as Christians, we should expect it. I want to be like Paul, who lived every day of his spiritually transformed life expecting Jesus to come back the next day. It's why his letters to the churches of Corinth, Ephesus, and Thessalonica were filled with that urgency. He wanted to make certain the people he witnessed to could stand right before God when He returned to Earth for his people. There is a sense of urgency in our Christian walk. An urgency to make certain we confess every sin and blemish that gets in the way of our journey. God forgives and forgets sin, praise Him for that, but He wants us to come to Him and admit we've messed up. If we live our lives like Bruce Barnes in this story, looking holy and blameless on the outside, but wallowing in lust and filth on the inside, where's the change? Where's the point in which we not only repent and ask for forgiveness, but allow the Holy Spirit to change our conduct? It's absent.

I immediately sympathized with Rayford, and to a lesser extend Chloe. Here is a man who for most of his life ignores his wife's pleadings for him to seek Christ in his heart, preferring to wrap himself up in other pursuits like work, airplanes, and other women. Then all of a sudden, Christ returns and takes His people, including his wife who believed. Rayford didn't accept Christ, but he couldn't ignore what he knew in his heart. He knew she had been taken into Heaven, and he had been left behind. He'd missed out. All of a sudden, his own pursuits that he thought were so important become meaningless, and he's on his knees in grief, desperate for another chance to come to know Christ. And he does. He later shares his newfound faith with Chloe, his 20-year old daughter. But like father, like daughter, she's very skeptical. She doesn't get scared off outright, but she tries to piece through it with human reason, logic, and analysis. Her skepticism is discouraging to Rayford, but he's determined to see Chloe accept Christ. Eventually she does, but it takes much time and prayer before she opens her heart to God.

So anyway, I thought Left Behind was a marvelous piece of work. I've already begun Tribulation Force, in which Rayford, Buck, Bruce, and Chloe, our four main characters, band together to stand against AntiChrist and the enemies of God as the world hurtles toward its darkest hour.

Song of the Day: SonicFlood - "Write Your Name Upon My Heart"

Verse of the Day: "Brothers and sisters, we urge you to warn those who are lazy. Encourage those who are timid. Take tender care of those who are weak. Be patient with everyone." - 1 Thessalonians 5:14

Feeling the Burn

No, not the exercise kind of burn. Although I really should get back on my regimen soon if I want to get back to Furman in decent condition. I'm talking about hot peanut oil. When part of your job is cleaning the chicken fryers at Chick-Fil-A, you have to move quickly. Shut off the fryer, drop the oil, scrub the rails, wipe over the insides, hose the whole thing down, pump it up, and turn it back on again. All that has to be done in less than 5 minutes because you've always got the breader coming behind you with a full bird to be cooked. Speed is of the essence.

One of the consequences of quick cleaning is that it greatly increases the likelihood of accidents involving the hot grease. Take this afternoon, for example. I'm trying to scrub down the rails while the peanut oil funnels down the drain, hoping to shave a minute or two off the quick-drop routine. The scrubbing brush starts to whip the oil into a frenzy until it pops out in tiny splashes. Two of them splatter all over my right hand. Now imagine you're laying a hand on the dashboard of a hot car, and then imagine the car is made of acid. That's about how painful it was. Fortunately, such accidents have become almost commonplace for me; I normally leave with some kind of burn every other day. Where five years ago, I would have yelled in agony, today I just clenched my teeth, turned off the machine, stuck my hand in a latex glove full of ice, and started again. My mother hates for me to get hurt on the job, of course, but it's just one of those things you have to deal with as it happens. It isn't that I'm not careful, I wouldn't dare get near the chicken fryers without the training provided by my crew leaders at Greenville Mall. But you know, sometimes accidents just happen and whenever possible, you deal with it and keep on going.

I've got work every day this week. Yay for more chances to get burned! :P

My siblings started school again today. Naturally, Susannah didn't say much of anything about her day; she's one of those people you have to weasel information out of. Baxter loves his teachers, which I'm glad to hear because he now has many of the teachers I used to have. But my goodness, Mr. Pohl gives out Snoopy characters now? Where was I when this was going on? It's a conspiracy, I tell you. They wait until I'm gone to do the good stuff.

Reading has been quite productive this summer, as opposed to last year. Hilary gave me Fresh Power by Jim Cymbala, pastor of the Brooklyn Tabernacle, to read and discuss when the L-Team gets together next week. If you haven't done so yet, go find this book. Now. Pastor Cymbala lays it on the line: we need the Holy Spirit to bring people to Christ. Our testimony is powerless without Him. His criticism of the church 'growth' movement, I think, is almost dead-on accurate. Overreliance on gimmicks, trendy visions, pastors that deliberately tailor their messages so they won't offend people (anything to keep the high numbers) instead of confronting them about the need for Christ, and the absence of prayer: the centerpiece of the church, the mortar that supports its foundation. I plowed through this book in less than a week, and I promptly went out and picked up Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire by Pastor Cymbala. These books gave me a lot of new perspectives about the Holy Spirit and what it means to let the Spirit take control of my life. I need that fresh power every day. Otherwise, I couldn't even get out of bed.

Oh yeah, I've also started reading the Left Behind series, finally. I'm about ten chapters into the first book, so it's safe to say that'll keep me occupied for a good while.

Song of the Day: Natalie Grant - "Held"

Verse of the Day: "In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace." - Romans 6:11-14

Qualified for Service

I put this together as the first devotional for the BCM website earlier today.


When I was chosen to be the BCM Website Coordinator this year, I felt excited and humbled. Excited to have a role among a group of terrific young people with a passion for Jesus. Humbled in that despite my shortcomings, I was called to serve. Words can't express how thrilled and yet anxious I am about my position. I'll be honest here; I've never managed a professional website in my life. I'm a complete dunce at working with things like templates, HTML coding, graphics design, etc. Initially, I wasn't at all sure I could do it. And yet I was chosen for the role.

Prayer is a powerful tool, especially when you're having doubts. So I prayed to God several times, bringing my doubts and concerns to the table. Again and again, I'd ask, "God, I want to seek Your will and not my own. Is this what You would have me do? I don't feel like I'm properly equipped for this position. Are You sure someone else isn't better qualified? Managing a website is a pretty big deal! I don't want to mess it up..." I would ask these questions and voice my doubts before God. And each time, I felt the Holy Spirit stir within my heart, as if God was rebuking me for doubting Him. It felt like He was telling me, "Listen. I have you here for a reason. I want you to do this. You don't have to worry about doing it perfectly or making a mistake. I don't expect you to be perfect. If you'll just keep on trusting Me and get rid of your fear and doubt, you will glorify Me through this."

Thinking about this, I can't help but be reminded of Matthew 4:18-22. Simon Peter and his brother Andrew had been fishermen their whole lives. Along comes Jesus, who tells them to follow him and be "fishers of men." James and John were also there to hear the call. I don't know what was going through their minds when they heard that, but I can imagine they had their own doubts and fears. In Luke 5:1-11, at the Lake of Gennesaret, Jesus called them a second time. They had gone back to their fishing business, but this time, Jesus met them on their level. He produced a miraculous catch of fish as a sign that he cared about their needs and daily activities. When Peter saw this, he fell to his knees, face down in front of Jesus and begged him to go away from him; "I am a sinful man!"

In essence, Peter was saying, "Lord, why are you wasting your time on me? Surely, I'm beneath your attention and miracles! How can you possibly be bothered with a sinful person like me?" Peter rightly recognized his own sinfulness in the eyes of God, but he was still gripped by fear.What he didn't realize was that in teaching him and the disciples, and providing the miracle, Jesus showed that He did have a plan for their lives. He was calling them out to be a part of something bigger than themselves. All they had to do was leave everything behind and follow him. Jesus then said to Peter, "Don't be afraid; from now on you will catch men." And from that moment on, Peter and the other disciples left their nets of questions, doubt, fear, and uncertainty behind - and they followed Jesus.

How amazing is that? Jesus takes the most unlikely of men - modest fishermen, the low rung on the societal totem pole - and makes them his disciples. They weren't professional or perfect by any means. But that wasn't what the task required. Jesus asked for nothing but their total devotion to him, relying on God's power instead of their own, and they would glorify Him. That's a lesson I took from this passage in my own role. Looking back, I think I can say I reacted like Peter after the catch of fish. I knew I was inadequate, but instead of trusting in the Holy Spirit, I let my fear take control. The Spirit convicted me of that, and so I finally decided to stop doubting and spinning my wheels. God has a plan and a purpose in choosing me to take care of this website. I don't know all the details, but I trust that the Holy Spirit will equip and train me on His terms. I can't promise this website will be a professional one because I'm not a professional - but I can say that I will give it my total commitment. Jesus deserves no less.

Song of the Day: Jars of Clay - "Worlds Apart"

Verse of the Day: "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: if the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him." - Matthew 24:42-44

Glowing on the Inside

Well, as it turned out, my laptop did not accompany me to White Oak this weekend. But that's okay. It wasn't needed anyway.

The children's retreat was just wonderful. I came away from this event so encouraged by the power of the Holy Spirit at work in our activities and our hearts. It started as early as the actual journey down to White Oak. Annie Ruth, our children's minister, put on some cool tapes in our chartered bus for the kids to watch; one of them was a re-telling of the death and resurrection of Jesus. You know, I'm torn so much in my heart when I see it happen before my eyes. And I know without a doubt the agony Jesus endured, the anger in the hearts of the crowd, and the unfathomable joy in Mary's eyes at seeing Jesus alive again was infinitely more than a mere movie could ever depict. Few things get to me emotionally, but it wrenches me deeply to see Jesus whipped, beaten and scourged, struggling to carry his cross to Golgotha, and then nailed to the cross. The pain at seeing it unfold, however, pales in comparison to my bitter understanding of why he suffered and died. For me. Jesus took my sins on his sacred head and paid my death penalty for them. He stared down Satan, the prince of lies, and won the ultimate victory. While I was yet a sinner, hopelessly lost, Christ died for me. I will never be worthy of His love. I'm only thankful that Jesus, the only One who is worthy, lives in my heart and continues to love such a selfish, unforgiving sinner.

Anyway, we got to White Oak around 5:30 yesterday, had dinner at 6:00 (chargrilled chicken and peas always go great together), and then began our group activities. Bible Study was first. We watched a video documentary from Annie Ruth's son about the human ear, and how God's work can be seen in even our lesser-known parts. Then we read 1 Kings 18:16-46, one of my favorite Old Testament stories about Elijah's confrontation with the followers of the false god Baal and King Ahab. I dare you to read that passage right now and not come away in awe of the power and majesty of God the Father. We worked with the kids and helped them find things created by God that help us to understand who He is, and also the ways in which we can know God. One of my favorite things I took from this period was Q&A time, when we opened the floor for the kids to ask us anything that was nagging at them or they didn't understand about God, the Bible, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. They blew me away with how articulate and well-thought-out their questions were. One boy asked me about Satan and how he came to live in Hell, and another boy wanted to know about Judgment Day. Really amazing stuff. It showed they were paying attention and taking the lesson seriously, which is a huge encouragement to us.

After a snack at the canteen, we gathered outside in the woods for a bonfire. I'm sure they were all disappointed that we couldn't toast marshmallows, but still we had an awesome time. Anna Kate and I led the kids in campfire songs; I did the "I Just Wanna Be a Sheep" song and taught them the sign language for "Kumbaya." And it was nothing but our voices; we had no music, no instruments, no sound system - nothing to aid us. Let me tell you, it was some of the most beautiful sounding worship I've ever heard. It also gave me a chance to see my Creative Arts Camp partners again: Lynn, Lauren, and Justin. The church puppet ministry is in good hands with them on board for the fall. This is an inseperable trio. I also found Lauren to be an aspiring writer. Always a good thing.

After a slightly restless night, we woke up at 6:30 this morning, got packed up, and had breakfast an hour later. Then came the second Bible Study session, which focused on Jeremiah 36. It served as a cool reminder that no matter what, God's Word is true and complete, and it can never be revised or destroyed. We also showed the kids what it means to be tempted, and how we can resist temptation. The third session used Jesus' death and resurrection as told in Luke, and included a brief videotaped message about receiving Christ from Pastor Randy. Not sure yet if any decisions were made, but I know many of the kids were listening closely to his words. Then the group headed to lunch while I spent the period cleaning out the Bible Study room and preparing the Drama room for the following activity: music and miming. To my sheer delight, we dug out a few of our Ramblin' Road Trip songs from Vacation Bible School. I was amazed at how many kids remembered the words and motions! For a half hour, it felt like I was back in late June, performing "The Heartland" and "Ramblin' Road Trip" in the church choir room. Even better, our teenaged mimes came out and helped me do "We Believe," our slow song with sign language. They did a fantastic job; I can't say enough about how that song grips me whenever I hear it.

The kids got some free recreation time in the afternoon. They played relay games in the field out front, and then enjoyed some fun in the pool. For a while, it looked like we'd get forced indoors by an approaching storm, but thankfully, it veered off to the east. Once the pool party was over, it was time to get packed up and head home. The return trip was a breeze thanks in no small part to more of Annie Ruth's great videos. When we arrived in the church parking lot, I found out Lynn's mother had accidently locked her car keys inside her car and had to contact a locksmith for help. Since I wasn't about to let them wait by themselves, I ended up staying with them for an extra half hour in the parking lot. At that time, the storm finally reached us, so I cranked up my car and took them in with the air conditioner on full blast. We talked about a whole number of things, from fall plans to 9/11 to relationships. Soon enough, the locksmith came to the rescue and fished out their car keys. We said our goodbyes and departed. They told me how grateful they were that I stayed with them, but in my opinion, I was the one who was blessed. There are so many ways to show the love of Christ to other people. You just have to watch out for them. Something that might seem simple enough to you can mean so much more to that person.

Whew ... I missed lunch today and I'm dead tired, but I feel like I'm glowing on the inside. Thank You, God, for Your strength and Your many blessings, too many for me to count. I pray that Your light will continue to shine in the hearts of our kids, and if there is even one who is struggling with doubt and fear, may Your Spirit come into his or her heart. Give them a sense of peace, Lord. Like Elijah said, let them know that You are God. Let them understand that there is nothing more important than a personal relationship with You. I pray that if they need to confess that they are lost and need to let You into their hearts and change them with Your transforming love, let them do so. I pray also for myself and the rest of our young leaders. As the fall approaches with most of us soon to return to college, help us to stay on fire for You, Lord. Don't let us wander off the path when things get busy or complicated. Let Your Holy Spirit renew us each day as we turn to You for fresh power in our times of need. I love You, Father. I give You all the honor and all the glory in everything I do. In Christ's name I pray, amen.

Song of the Day: Chris Tomlin - "Indescribable"

Verse of the Day: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." - Ephesians 2:8-10

Watching Time Fly

Thankfully, my dog behaved herself last night and allowed me to get a decent night's sleep. That is, if you believe a little over three-and-a-half hours and being licked awake at 6:45 qualifies as decent. Luckily, I'm an early riser.

Susannah and Baxter had to register at SFC today. That's always fun. I used to enjoy gloating at their expense that I wouldn't be starting school for another month yet, but not anymore. These days, a month is no time at all. And I'd just as soon not have to eat my words when my time comes. But I digress. I'm excited for Baxter. He's going into 6th grade, the ever-strenuous middle school. But he's got quite a few of my favorite teachers at SFC this year. Mrs. Reinink (History) is tough as nails, but I loved her so much. She is the one teacher you can count on to bust you for chewing gum, wearing your shirt tail untucked, or wearing shorts that don't meet dress code requirements. But hey, when you think about it, all you have to do to stay on her good side is follow the rules. Easy for you to say, Baxter replies. Mr. Pohl (Math) will be a challenge for him; Math never was my best subject, but he always taught me in a way that at least made sense. He was tough and firm, but also fair, and he encouraged me to do my best. I'm sure he'll do the same for Bax; now I just hope Bax will ignore the horror stories other students will share about Big Bad Pohl. Mrs. Stephens (Creative Arts) won't be that new for him, but I'm hoping Baxter will take an interest in Drama and consider pursuing the high school course when he gets older. I know he'd make a great actor and that she'd be happy to have him. He'll also be taking Bible, Study Skills, and Physical Education.

As for Susannah, it'll be her senior year. Wow. That's hard for me to process. It really has been three years since I was a senior and she was just entering the freshman class. But anyway, I'm pumped for her senior class. I have known so many of them through lots of activities we've participated in, and they're an awesome group of people. I'm glad most of her group has stayed together through much of high school; it's not easy to keep that many kids in one place for that long. She's got a big challenge on her place as she's agreed to take both AP English and AP Biology at the same time. Not an easy task, but I've had Ms. Gilbert's English before, and I know Mrs. Cooper. Susannah has always done her best work for her, too. So please pray that this works out for her, because if she can stick with it and pull out some good grades in those courses, it will really catch the eye of colleges around the state. That's quite a challenge, but I believe she can do it. I want her senior year at SFC to be her best year ever!

Well, I suppose I'll get off my little soapbox now. I still need to pack for the children's retreat this weekend. Here I go slacking off again. I don't know if my laptop will accompany me or not, but in any case, I shall return shortly!

Song of the Day: Martin Smith - "Did You Feel the Mountains Tremble"

Verse of the Day: "And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him." - 1 John 4:16