Awesome Thursdays

I love thursdays, specifically thursday nights. A typical thursday starts off with a 7am class, which is okay, then off to chapel, chapel is great, then over to two more classes from which I get out at 2:15. From there I usually go home and read or rest for a couple of hours or talk to Laura on the phone, but when am I not doing that, honestly. Then thursdays start to get really good. I head back to Southern and play intramural basketball, which is great fun. After that its to the hot tub and the pool. Oh the nights not over. I then head back home and wait for Rayford to get off work, get home, and take a shower. Then it is time to watch the Office and Smallville with all the roommates. Its a thursday tradition we have. We don’t watch them unless everyone is home. Its good hang out time, and . . . we are all on the same page with our TV drama/comedy.

I love Thursdays! They are full and fruitful and great.

Myth

I love all the static that comes with living up here in KY.

It crazy how much static gets built up in the clothing up here. I can’t get in and out of my car without seeing a huge blue spark. I’m serious, the static up here is serious.

The War

Way back in the day, way way back in the day, when I started attending SEU Travis and I were just starting to develop and strong friendship. Going to SEU was part of the reason Travis and I where able to establish a strong relationship outside of the small group setting, because it was really close to his work place. So naturally we started eating lunch together whenever he didn’t have anything to do. One of the first activities we participated in very frequently at first was punch buggy.

It started out with just a random, “punch buggy blue”, whack. “Dude did you really just call a punch buggy”, “yeah, and I punched you too, didn’t I?”.

Being the competitive guys we are, it started an intense rivalry. At least for the first semester, maybe even two, I couldn’t jump in the truck without being on high alert. We became punch buggy pros, well I was. Travis once called a large brown stump, punch buggy orange. It was on and it was escalating. The calls were becoming more and more frequent and the punches were becoming more and more vicious.

At the height of The War, Travis drove by the VW dealership, which I had no idea was coming. I remember it like it was yesterday. We were in Red, Trav’s old Nissan pickup truck, and the dealership snuck up on me. Travis just bursted out calling punch buggy after punch buggy, arms started flailing, I gathered my composure looked over to see some colors and started shouting back, I started retaliating. Arms were going wild and a stray arm hit the gear shifter into neutral. We had just inched out into the intersection so we slowed and were rolling through ever-so-slowly. It had to look like the tasmanian devil was in the cab of Red. We finally exhausted all the color options available and Travis decided to start driving again.

Neither of us were willing to admit it at the time, but I’m sure we both had bruises after that day.

It was an epic battle, the likes which had never been seen up until that point, and still until this very day. . .

I am Israel

Israel like the nation, not like Jacob. In the Old Testament Israel is often denied the spoils of the enemies after they defeated them. They were to devote all of the possessions to destruction. Gold, silver, clothes, animals, everything. This was God’s command so as to keep the Israelites dependent on God. They often went into battle without weapons, but in obedience to God’s command. He usually didn’t let them know in advance how he was going to deliver them.

This is where I’m at with God right now. He is keeping me in a place where I have no choice but to constantly depend on him. I’m going to battle with pots and pans and yet somehow he is giving me overwhelming victories. What do I mean? I mean I’m in one of the best seminaries in the world (which I wouldn’t be without a gracious gift), I have a job (earning money to keep afloat), I just got engaged (symbolizing the biggest and greatest commitment ever, that’s happening July 26 Lord willing), and there is so much more. What I mean is that life is good. I don’t have a lot of extra of anything, but I have what I need. Thank you God!

How long has it been. . .

since you were put in your place? Think. How long? Year, three months, three days, how long?

For me it’s been about ten hours. In my Systematic Theology class today my professor lectured on the attributes of God. The first one he spoke of, and actually the only one he got to today, was God’s self-sufficiency. What is God’s self-sufficiency you might ask?

Definition - God possesses within himself intrinsically and eternally every quality in infinite measure.

This definition speaks to a quality of God we’ve come to know as transcendence. It means that God is totally separate from all created things. That makes sense right? God created every thing. He was there before it and he still exists apart from it. God doesn’t need creation to be God. God is God whether we’re here or not.

“Every quality in infinite measure”. God is all powerful and all knowing. God is enormous. He is huge and smart. Bigger than we’ll ever know and smarter than we’ll ever know. If thinking that stuff doesn’t put you in your place then maybe this will.

Isaiah 40:12-17. In 12-14 we see some awesome pictures of how powerful God is, in that he can measure all the waters of the world in the hollow of his hand, and how wise God is, in that he has never consulted anyone or been taught by anyone or had to learn any piece of information.

In 15 God starts an assault on our pride and our stance before him. It says, “Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket, and are accounted as the dust on the scales; behold, he takes up the coastlands like fine dust.” The nations, all the people to ever walk the earth, are like “a” drop from a bucket. If you were camping and you needed to put the camp fire out before you went to sleep and while you were carrying the bucket, which was full to the very top, you only spilled one drop, how much would you say you spilt when you got to the fire? You would say “wow, I didn’t spilling anything”, which would indeed be impressive. A drop is pretty much nothing. It gets worse in 17 Isaiah says, “all the nations are as nothing before him, they are accounted by him as less than nothing and emptiness.”

Ouch, that is a direct assault on the human ego. Now that is getting put in your place. We are so infinitely small compared to God. We are nothing, literally nothing, next to him. Humanity and all of creation do not add one bit of richness or fullness to who God is. God gains nothing by our existence. That is directly the opposite of how most of us live our lives on a daily basis. We walk and talk like we are something, like we are entitled to respect and acknowledgement. Its time to get put in our place, we are nothing next to God.

Lucky for us, that while we are nothing and so insignificant God chooses to love us and take care of us to the point that he even died for us. While he is so big and so smart he chooses to get involved in our lives on a personal level. That ought to wow us. That ought to make us humble before him, and it only will once you see him for who he rightfully is, he is God. He is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and he is worthy of all our praise, adoration, worship, and submissiveness.

Rays Win! Rays Win!

Like I said, I was nervous for tonight. I had to work so I had just decided to go about my business at work and find out about the game when I got home.

Couldn’t do it. It was about 8:50PM and I was dying to know something about the game even if it was bad news. I remembered someone had had the radio on a sports station in the kitchen last night. Sure enough I changed the radio over to AM tuning and got an update on the game in no time. Rays were down 1-0. Pedroia hit a solo shot in the 1st inning.

Now I was really nervous. We were busy at first so I didn’t have much time to spend in the kitchen listening to the game. Finally around 9:30PM or so we slowed down. I did dishes for a while listening the the football station because they would interrupt to give updates on the game.

The Rays tied it up 1-1. Good News

Long story short, I found an AM station that was broadcasting the game. I got off work with the game going into the 9th inning with the Rays up 3-1. They had nearly escaped the 8th inning.

My heart was pounding. He struck the first batter out. My fist was pumping. He walked a batter. My heart was racing. He struck another guy out. My heart was jumping, my face was smiling. Ground ball to the second baseman, game over. I was yelling and fist pumping and what not.

It really made me appreciate listening to a sporting event on the radio. Its pretty exciting.

Looking forward to watching the Rays play in the fall classic. I think they’ve got a good shot at winning. We’ll see…

Backs Against the Wall

The Rays are on the verge of blowing it.

Red Sox won 4-2 tonight.

I’m nervous, really nervous.

I thought the Red Sox were done.

Finished.

As good as gone.

Not so fast Rays fans.

Game 7 tonight! (It’s 12:14am, that explains how they lost “tonight” and are playing game 7 “tonight”)

Come one Rays you can do it!

Opportunities

John quit. I wrote about John about a week ago. I was excited because John and I had been having some great conversations about God and life in general. I’ll continue to pray for him and hope that the seed I planted will be watered.

But where one door closes another door opens. Another co-worker, manager actually, knows that I am a Christian and a student at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Over the past few weeks she has said a few comments that indicated that she would like to talk about God sometime, but it’s kind of hard while at work. Tonight we had a lull in business so we decided to eat during the down time. Usually at work we eat when we find time in between deliveries or phone calls or making orders, but tonight there were no deliveries, phones calls, or things to be made, at least for forty-five minutes or so. Right when we sat down she said, “Alright, let’s talk about this religion thing”. She went on to ask about church and experiences with God. God opened doors for me to talk about Jesus and sin and the church and the bible. It was a good conversation that happened all in about ten minutes.

Another seed planted. It will be interesting to see where this one ends up. I’m praying that it will end up on soil ground.

People to pray for at work: Paula and Anthony (married), their two kids, Anthony (broken collar bone) and Kierra (wants to go to church), Brandy(i) (not sure how to spell it), Chris, Jeremy (his wife is pregnant and in Germany for military duty), John (not the one that quit, but that just got hired as a driver, is a mailman and picking up extra work for dental bill), George (works Sundays with me), Mike, and Rob.

Myth

I’m super stoked about the Cubs losing in the NLDS.

USC deserves to be ranked number six in the nation.

Manny Ramirez sucks.

Ryan Howard is hot right now.

I would hate for the Rays to go to the World Series.

Bama is not that good this year.

Eric Berry’s hit on Knowshon Moreno was the gayest hit I’ve ever seen. (the run starts around thirty six seconds)

Texas jumping to number one is right, because they have demolished two top ten teams just like Bama.

OU even before Texas was a strong and tested team.

I’ve been sucking my last few intramural basketball games.

I’ll Give You The Rundown

The most beautiful girl on the planet said yes. I asked her to marry me and she said yes. Laura Brocco and I are officially engaged. She has a ring on her finger and story to go along with it. I am so thankful I get to marry her. She has a beauty that starts deep within her heart and soul and permeates her entire being. She is radiant and I cherish her so much.

I picked her up around 8:30am.

Then I took her to Cracker Barrel.

Then I took her hiking to Tioga Falls.

It was beautiful.

She thought I was going to propose under the waterfall

Then I told her to get ready because we were going “out” to dinner. Then while she was getting ready, in a dress and accessories I got specially for her on our engagement night, me and John Michael and Becca hurried like crazy to turn my living room into a romantic candle lit dining room with rose petals sprinkled all over the table and ground. The hall way from my room to the living room was lined with candles and had a rose petal trail leading her down the hall. When she came out she was completely surprised at the transformation. We had a nice dinner, except for the burnt garlic bread, but we didn’t each much anyway. After dinner I played a slideshow/video I had made for her and as it was ending I got down on one knee and proposed. The whole day and especially the night went so well!

Here’s some dinner pics.

The night was absolutely the best night ever. Now we get to have fun and talk about our wedding, which we’re thinkin’ll be next december.

p.s. Laura Brocco I love you with all that I am. I am looking forward to the rest of our lives together and I just can’t get enough of you. You are beautiful inside and out.

Kentucky Bound

Little Laura Brocco is flying my way in a few hours. This weekend has good things in store…

John

John’s my manager at work. I like John. We close together often which means we spend a lot of time talking because the last hour or two is usually fairly slow.

I’m amazed at how open and honest he is with me (and I think with people in general). I’ve been praying that God would open doors for me to share Jesus with people at work and the doors have been opening with John. We talk a lot about God and life in general, but I’ve been trying to use every opportunity I get to talk about Jesus specifically.

He doesn’t really think to much about church or religion or the bible, but a conversation we had the other night, I think, really hit home with him. We talked about not just living for ourselves, and I expressed that I think we are here in this world to live for others. God and our neighbor, in that order. John said the idea of not living for one’s self hit home with him, which nothing else up to that point had.

I’m praying, and hoping you will too (if there is anybody reading this), that God will work on John’s heart. So that he may see how loving God is and that he may know the Truth of the gospel, that Jesus came to die for his (our) sins so he (we) may have eternal life.

Fact

John Michael (one of my roommates) and Alex (a friend that lives a couple apartments over) went to a Hanson concert last night.

I’m sure they looked like a cute couple.

The Gift

Laura Brocco has a gift. Self proclaimed and apparently true.

She’s been claiming to be able to predict who’s going to win a sporting event.

So this weekend I put her to the test. She said she didn’t like being backed into a corner to pick the games, but I just had to see if this self proclaimed gift was legit.

It is.

13-5 in the picks for college games this weekend. Including Hawaii as an upset over Fresno St. Now keep in mind, she doesn’t even know the top 25. It was purely just the gift taking over and predicting the winners.

She’s also picked the NFL games this weekend so we’ll see how that goes.

I’m impressed Laura Brocco.

To Timothy. From Paul.

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill you ministry. (2 Timothy 4:1-5)

I have to read this at least three times a week for my Systematic Theology class along with Psalm 1 and Psalm 19. My professor has assigned us these three passages for the first eight or nine weeks of the class.

Out of all the readings this paragraph gets me the most. This passage really gets at the heart of what it means to be in the ministry. Our job as ministers, and Christians really, is to share what has been revealed to us by God’s Word. We are to share Jesus with anyone and everyone we can, “in season and out of season”. Not just when you feel like it or when you think the time is right, because if our heart is in the right spot we should always feel like it. Now I’m not talking about being forceful or anything like that, but I think what Paul is saying is that preaching the word should be such a big deal to us we can’t hold it in. It has changed our life radically and we should want that for others too.

The other part that strikes me as so true and more of a reason to be urgent about doing “the work of an evangelist” is the part where he talks about how people will forsake sound teaching. This, has always been, but is still even more prevalent today with the unitarian and emergent church movement. Certain “ministers”, or thinkers really, have realized that there is some tough teaching in the Bible, and as a result have tried to take certain “easier” aspects of the gospel and focus on them, while leaving out the more difficult parts. People like to hear the easy stuff too. Paul tells us that in this passage, he says, “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.”

God I ask that you would fill the ministers of this world with your Holy Spirit that we might preach the word in a way that would glorify you. Help us tell people what they need to hear, not what their itching ears want to hear. Please send your Spirit to those we come in to contact with. Help us be bold and passionate about fulfilling Your purpose.