Nothing Else Matters

Trust I seek and I find in You
Every day for us something new
Open mind for a different view
And Nothing Else Matters
          -Metallica

And Even More

You claim to be a Christian
            then you turn around and curse His holy name.
If you bear the name of Christ
If you've been purchased by His blood
            then aspire to be worthy of the same!

They call you Reverend, Pastor, Father, Friend
            but you exploit them, take advantage of their trust.
If you bear the name of Christ
If you've been purchased by His blood
            you must flee from immorality and lust!

You say you've seen the light yet focus upon faults
            forgetting you've got plenty of your own.
If you bear the name of Christ
If you've been purchased by His blood
            then demonstrate the grace that He has shown!

You call yourselves His children
            yet disobey the One who gives you breath
If you bear the name of Christ
If you've been purchased by His blood
           you must be true and faithful even unto death!

You boast your eyes are opened, you're enlightened
            but look no further than you wish to see.
If you bear the name of Christ
If you've been purchased by His blood
            you should gaze upon the world from bended knee!

You say He is your Lord, He is your Master
            tho' by your actions you deny Him o'er and o'er.
If you bear the name of Christ
If you've been purchased by His blood
            He deserves to have your all and even more!

If you bear the name of Jesus
If by His wounds you're healed
            He deserves to have your all and even more.

Walk the Talk

Talk Is Cheap  -  Actions Speak

Look at what you spend your time and money on.  Then you'll know what is truly important to you...no matter what you say is important to you.

At Face Value

All our lives we are taught to take things at face value.  At school we are taught not to question, but to accept as truth, the information being given to us.  Whether it is that green is green, that the sky is blue or that every action has an equal and opposite reaction, from the time we enter the world we are saturated with information that we are expected to just accept as truth.  That's where "because I said so" has it's origin.
And if you are curious enough to seek the "why" to these things, to question the almighty "they", you are labeled a rebel or a troublemaker.  What's wrong with rocking the boat a little?  Why must we be politically correct?  If we never question or search out the why behind our beliefs, how then can we call them OURS?  And how would we discover anything new?
It is so much easier to just sit back and say, "Oh, that's how it is?  Okay." than to ask questions, seek answers and risk inconveniencing people in the process.  So will you continue to accept everything you hear as truth, as a robot accepts a program, or will you become involved, make an effort to search out answers, work to learn the why and stop taking things (and people) at face value.

Defense! Defense! Defense! Why?

Why is it that when someone holds us accountable for our actions (or inaction) we tend to immediately get defensive, even angry?  Is it because we are embarrassed at being caught?  Or because we think the person who brought it up thinks they're better than us?  Or simply because we are guilty, know we're guilty and are ashamed of ourselves for not living up to our potential?  Yes, sometimes the motive of the accuser is to elevate themselves or to bring you down a notch, but the next time someone who you know cares about you holds you accountable, try to get underneath the embarrassment and anger and be honest with yourself.  Say to yourself, "Ok.  That's something I need to improve on (or change)." and then do it.

Word Like Razor Blades

words cut like razor blades
tears flow like blood
draining me staining me
drown like a flood
squiggles zig-zags
crazy designs
fill my soul
invade my mind!

haunting hunting
tracking down
mindless answers
endless frowns
darkness sneaks in
suffocating and cold
grasping grappling
missing the hold!

falling deeper
deeper still
despair devouring
all my will
words cut like razor blades
scars underneath
run deep and don't heal
from sharp gnashing teeth.

Chew On This

"Being still and doing nothing are two completely different things."    - Jackie Chan as Mr. Han

I Hate It When That Happens!

All day today, I kept thinking it was Friday.  It just hit me again that I have to get up and go to work in the morning.  I hate it when that happens!

Quote for the Day

"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy."                -Martin Luther King

Chew On This

"Unhappiness is in not knowing what we want and killing ourselves to get it."
                                                                                    -Don Herold

Learning Lessons is Hard

Once again I feel like a total failure.  Why is trying to do the right thing so stinking hard?  Sometimes it seems like the whole world must be watching my life like it's a pathetic comedy.  Having what I think is a great idea once again come crashing down with the success of a faceplant.  Watching me get my hopes up and allow myself to become excited about something only to have it grossly underacheive the desired outcome.
No, I am not sitting here feeling sorry for myself, but for the group I am supposed to be helping.  I am frustrated and embarrassed that I have let them down once again.  I can't help but wonder if there is something I am supposed to be learning...am I taking on too much, filling my life with unnecessary stress?  Should I be standing up for (or against) something that I am not?  Should I be asking for help instead of trying to do it all myself?  I have learned how to do things differently next time to get a better result, but that doesn't comfort me RIGHT NOW.  It is a lesson learned for the future but does nothing to help the present situation.  Learning lessons is no fun at all....

Memories of Okinawa

The whole world laid out bare before us....waiting for us to touch and taste and smell and drink in all that it had to offer....walking through the streets without fear....reclaiming childhood as we plagued the playgrounds until the wee hours....silently watching the sun sink into the sea and then marveling at the beauty of the moonlight on the water....becoming one with the depths of the sea....looking up at the sun, the moon, from beneath the rippling surface of the ocean and thinking I'd never seen anything so beautiful....laying in bed with the window open, listening to the sound of racing engines in the distance and smelling carbon in the air, the tropical breeze gently kissing my skin....the thrill of winding narrow roads in a fast car....wandering into the nearest bakery and tasting something sweet and new and different every time, sharing them with someone sweet and new and different, someone special....the red & green of the traffic lights repeated in each leftover raindrop on the windshield, like a million tiny Christmas lights strung out just for me....breath-taking views of intriguing places....hiking in the lush green jungles where the ground fell away so suddenly sometimes, it would catch me by surprise and take my breath away....and cutting through all the green, the rocky riverbed with it's ice-cold water rushing over smooth stones and the contrast of the jagged boulders that jutted from it's banks....money that could be strung onto a chain or a keyring....clown fish eating sea urchin right out of my hand....suddenly finding myself in the midst of a school of tiny fish, the sun glinting off their silvery bodies, the whisper of thousands of tiny fins on my skin, and then gone....the controlled fear of coming face to face with my first sea snake....looking up from eighty feet underwater at a massive wall of coral teeming with life and feeling like everything is in slow motion - like time itself has slowed to all but a standstill....secluded little beaches....suicide cliffs and her ghostly legends....reckless abandon and new-found freedom - freedom for the mind, for the body, for the soul....strolling along the seawall being crazy americans and admiring the artwork left behind by the creative and the Creator....fast car by tracy chapman....soba, yakitori, and canned hot coffee from a vending machine....looking out at the endless ocean stretching beyond the horizon and seeing the big picture....finding my soulmate....and myself.

Black or White

Which dog are YOU feeding?

Youth Group Update

We finished our Book Drive Fundraiser yesterday and I think it was pretty successful.  We will see when the last few donations finish trickling in and I can haul them to the buyer.  Thank you to everyone who participated and donated!  Our next fundraiser is a 12-hour-long Rockathon!  We will be out in front of Texas Snow on Wesley Street in Greenville, Texas next Saturday, June 12th.  If you're in the area, please come by and see us and show your support!  Our Youth Group at Floyd Baptist Church is really excited about summer camp at Alto Frio!  It's coming up quickly!  It's going to be an crazy time of awesome fun and worship!  Can't wait!