Party in the U.S.A

I sometimes hate admitting (but not so much) that I keep up with the pop cultural parts of the world. I'm able to hold quite an extensive conversation with you about new movies, hot actors, new tunes, and the disney channel. I also like to have my opinion on all of these topics and share them with fine folks such as you. For example, my patient roomie Grace and I watched several movies this weekend. It was raining, what else are we supposed to do? My first movie review is FAME. Good Lord, go see it. Mostly females, go see it. It was a musical type of flick so of course I was in love. Like I need to be in love with one more male who can sing and wear plaid. I just totally dig talent, and when a boy named Marco sings and plays the piano to a song he wrote, I just can't help but fall in love. So yes, it was a great movie. The second movie review is for LOVE HAPPENS, and that review is a little different. I liked it. I love Aaron Eckhart and Jennifer Aniston, but the movie was quite depressing until the end. I reckon that's what I get for seeing Fame the day before.

Music review: currently playing in my ipod is of course the Fame soundtrack and David Crowder's newest called Church Music. There are only a small handful of songs I like on Crowder's album, but that man's lyrics just tear it up.

Oh and The Hills starts back this week. Trash TV Monday, it's good to have you back.

And it's quite enough that we are loved

Myself and a lot of my homies seem to be struggling with this topic it seems, so sit back and let's chat about it. It's fun for Christians to figure out how much time we are giving to God and ask how much is "too much" or "too little". I don't have the answer for each and every person, but I've looked at my own life and schedule lately and I've come up with the notion that it's a heart issue. With Jesus, it's always a heart issue. He cares more about our hearts than our watches, our wallets, or the dirt on our hands. I took on the task of leading a bible study and discipling a girl before I knew what grad school had in store for me this year. Now that I'm a month into it with work piled to my ceiling, I wouldn't have said no to those things even if I had known. Sunday night bible study is my favorite part of the week. I love playing the guitar for cru even though I'm technically not some cool "leader" and I'm not as involved as I used to be. This outlook on it all is of absolutely no credit to myself. What I've learned is that what Jesus requires of me is my life, and this includes ministry in some form. It means being a part of and involved in a community through a church. It means doing well in school. It means working as hard as I can at my job. It means serving my roommates. It means having my own time with Him each day. And anything else I can think of. All of this takes energy and time. But as Tim Keller so awesomely put it, "...we won't mind the cost of following after Christ when we compare it to the price he paid to rescue us."

Does all this mean I have to be "Super Christian" walking around all the time, sharing the gospel with every squirrel that I pass on campus? Nope. It means simply living for Jesus, in the most real sense of the phrase. Not counting up the hours spent on ministry activities, because I can promise you Jesus does not care. Besides, I'm aware that I'm a screw-up and nothing I ever DO will impress Him anyways. I reckon that's the reason He cares more about my heart.

quote of the day

Me: "If I could rid the world of one thing it would be Clemson. It's just too much orange."
Amanda: "Yea, Stacey and Clinton would not approve."

Laura(referring to the football game): "That guy just hit that guy."

quote of the day

Kevin: "I think I wanna sky dive on my wedding day."
Laura: "but what if you like, died?"

a goat

While eating quesdillas, a good friend asked me, "what do you want to accomplish this year?" I don't remember what I told her. But in the interest of your time spent reading this, I'll share what I think is the answer. I'll first share about the fact that the parable of the prodigal son has come up close to every single day for about 3 weeks. Both speakers at FCA have talked on it, and my Bible study is going through the book, the Prodigal God by Tim Keller. One of the guys at FCA made a good point about it, something different that I hadn't heard. He focused in on the line said by the older brother,"Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends." You never gave me. The Father gives us literally EVERYTHING, yet we respond in selfishness. It circles back around to what I want to accomplish this year, that being a decrease of myself. Having more of a servant attitude in particular. My problem of too much ME comes from my focus, and routinely my focus is not on serving. But like so many other things Jesus calls us to do, its not simple. Serving as an action focuses on Me, but serving as an act of worship focuses on Christ and that's the one I'm going after. This humbling thing has been a theme lately and I know exactly why. I dig it.

quote of the day

Erica: "Describe one way life is different from today."

what?

quote of the day

Brandi (text message): "I have decided to become a Panthers fan. Since I know nothing I will need assistance."

Friendses

Labor day is stupid here at Winthrop because they beleive in labor. But in the spirit of fighting crime, Laura came up to visit for the afternoon and brought her wonderful pet maycee! This, folks, made my heart the happiest it could be. I do love the company of Laura and Erica while getting a free chicken sandwich, but mostly i love walking a dog around campus on a lovely day. I get all pumped when Laura or Erin or Erica is around because I still can't get over how completely rad our friendship is. I don't think that feeling will ever go away and that is ok. The Lord is beautiful and I see it through those 3 girls often. Sorry to get all sisterhood up in here, but I just had to give props in the area of rediculous friendships. We're cute, too.

Come Down to the River

A lot of times I want to grab Christians by the face and tell them that what Jesus did was and still is enough. Tell them to stop worrying about relationships that are or aren't happening, the money that they do or don't have. I want to tell people that the gifts they haven't earned aren't for them anyways. That the church isn't about them. That participation in the good things doesn't get you even a step closer to salvation. If you ask me one thing that I've learned within the past year, it is definetly the thing that I guess I was "supposed" to have learned a long time ago. I've spent quite a bit of time in Luke over the past year. I've noticed that the Pharisees tried too hard, the disciples just didn't get it, and that what's at God's heart is usually different than what's at mine. I've also noticed that God is in control of you and me and everything else and nothing will ever ever change that. I'm pretty sure that the main reason I didn't go into full-time ministry like I had considered several times is because we rarely get it right. Not saying that people who are in full-time ministry are lacking something, cause they definetly are not. I reckon ministry, to me, is a Tuesday. It should be a normal everyday occurance that's not perfectly thought out or planned or carefully evaluated at the end. Nor should it have a hint of ourselves in it. It took me leaving college, where ministry was at its peak, to realize that. I've really looked at how Jesus hung out with the people on the other side of the tracks, the sinners, the people who seem to be lost and messed up. I noticed how that is me. For all the moral things I've accomplished in my life, I see that it's gained me nothing. And that, my friends, if anything should be a burden to me. After learning that I suck at just about everything as a Christian, I see that that's just the point! Jesus and what he did is enough. Nothing else required. Maybe real maturity comes when you wake up everyday still realizing that you're thirsty. We can't accept His grace if we never believe that we need it. cool.

Something Beautiful

If you are one of those people who lies awake at night asking yourself, "what should i do with my life?" or "what should i be when i grow up?" then boy (or girl) stay tuned because I, as usual, have the answer. The answer is simple and uncomplex. It is the thing that makes your heart swell up. It's the thing that for whatever reason your insides were wired for. It's the thing that God points at and says "Do this! Because I made you this way and it will make me happy when you do." I realized this my freshman year in my sport management 101 class. I realized it for the second time with intensity tuesday night in my finance class. I got my first assignment of the semester, and I have to create a sports organization. We have to create the mission statement, the facility layout, the budget, the organizational chart, the whole gig. I set out to be different in the one I selected, so when I asked my totally wonderful professor about the topic of surfing, he threw his hands up in the air and told me that he surfs in Ireland. First of all, no one on earth is that cool and second of all, what other bit of education requires that you write papers on surfing or golf or soccer? Every other major sucks compared to mine. Sorry about the bad taste that truth leaves in your mouth, but thats just how it is, people. Just this whole idea of what my major entails thrills me. Now that you, faithful reader, have figured out what makes your heart beat at night, go out and graduate into life with a grin.

Also made friends with 3 of our neighbors today. community rules!