sittin on the dock of...

Back from Cali.  Well kinda. I am sitting in ATL airport after flying all night and had a nice lil few hour layover that gave me enough time to reach the end of the internet.  I am seeing my bed in my head and how I am going to walk in, put my pj's on, yes it's okay for boyz to wear Pj's.   Then, I will turn my fan on, the noise will be really loud, and I will sleep hard core for a few hours!  This week was interesting.  It's crazy to be working on something that makes you stretch your brain big time. 

Also, if you are one of those people who constantly invites me to eat fatty food like everyday, (Rhett), please do not invite me.  I will be happy to eat a healthy meal with you in my house or yours, but I am refusing eating out this week!  I know Pat at Macs will give me crap about not visiting, and the girls at Zaxby's will frown, and the stock of Zaxby's will continue to drop...I must do what I have to do.

they keep spinnin

So wow. The rims, they just keep spinning. We went up to West Virginia this weekend for some nice snow skiing :) We had an awesome time, such a good time, and such pain and tiredness that we decided to end a day early :) Instead of skiing all day on Sunday, we just sold our lift tickets and drove home. It was great snow and my "blades" were fun as usual, as well as the trail mix I found in my ski pockets from last year! ewwww, yummy. After spending a week of work in Houston, then straight to WV, then now in Southern Cali, I am beat! I woke up this morning at 4AM to fly to Los Angeles. I am just NOW getting in, I have almost been up an entire day!

It was an interesting day. I walk out of LAX and the first thing I see is a guy telling me I look like a movie star and have a nice beard. He then goes on to tell me how I can have inner peace. I hear him out and then look him straight in the eye and tell him with excitement that Jesus Christ has given me more peace than anything or anyone in the world and I will trust Him alone. He then went on to tell me that he trusts Him. I then tell him that he doesn't trust him completely, then he tries to tell me he does, then I tell him he is a hare chrishna and not trusting Jesus alone for the forgiveness of his sins. He then tells me to have a good afternoon :) I love Jesus and I love that in so many ways, He gave us no shady areas. He was clear on the essentials!

Now I'm off to bed in my HUGE KING SIZE bed with a white comforter, which is my new favorite kind of comforter. I have learned that if you stay in hotels enough, this is the best. I hope you are all well and sharing what you learn, now go serve your King.

this crazy life

So I never thought I would pack a bag a day before a unscheduled trip only to get back to unpack dirty clothes, try to find clean clothes, and pack for another unscheduled trip. I thought was going to California this week, I was told on Monday that I would be going to Houston. I spent this past week in Houston and got home late tonight and just got settled in. I leave for work tomorrow morning, then to West Virginia to ski, then back Sunday night. Sleep at my buddy Ed and Julie's and then head out to LA for another week at 6AM Monday. It's crazy when you look back a few years and your thoughts then about what you would be doing now. I never would have thought I would be where I am and doing what I am doing. I know the Lord is preparing something for my future. It seems like in these times I just imagine what it would have been like for Jesus to swing a hammer and miss a nail and hit his finger. He was familiar with us. He was one of us. I wonder when He was swinging the hammer, how often He was thinking of what the next few years would hold in his ministry. He was probably around my age and probably started his ministry around the age of 30. These thoughts keep me entertained. I am taking this time to learn about life, people, and food. I am such a pig, all I do is eat. I woke up this morning, put on a brand new pair of slacks and in the buttoning process, wondered how the button was going to get into the hole. Don't act like you haven't been there.

Also, a close friend of mine got married a few weeks ago. I didn't really go into great detail in talking about their wedding, but it was awesome. I just love the rehearsal dinner. I kinda feel girly because I really do look forward to someday being around my closest friends in a setting like that. Here is a clip from my toast. Not the burned bread, but the wedding rehearsal dinner :)

simple

Sometimes I think, I am a very simple man. I am not picky when it comes to food. There are only 3 things that I just do not like. Raw Onions, Spicy Mustard, and Black Olives. Everything else is great.

I also realized that I am very simple when I noticed I have a phone in my bathroom right beside the toilet. It made me happy. I

It should not have made me that happy.

a little help please

I flew into Houston tonight and was reminded of how humid it is in Texas. As soon as you get out the airport, you feel like you just got out the shower. It's such a great feeling. I'll be working hard for a week and we will have fun.

I've realized something about myself. When I am away from my "normal" life, aka, being at home, something happens. I can't quite explain it, it's like all the distractions are gone and I can think a lot more clearly. I checked into my hotel tonight and realized that I haven't really studied the Bible in a long time. I sat here at the desk and came to the conclusion that I'm really complacent right now. It's crazy how sin can make you so clueless. I think I've really been clueless for at least a year in my spiritual growth. I think you get deceived because you still care about the things of God and showing people their way to Him, but you get comfortable. I realized that I never ask people to pray for me. I have always felt like it was a burden to ask people things like that and I've realized that I'm a prideful man. I am really tired of myself and tired of waiting for what's around the corner in my life. I feel like I am waiting for this ministry that is just going to appear and I'm going to get to travel around and teach people how to reach others for Christ. As I sit here, God is totally telling me that maybe I should just try with the place He has given me. Dang. It's really neat what happens when you read the Bible. You can take a prideful heart about 15 minutes ago and the Bible can chisel a few tears out of a man. I was reading tonight in Hebrews 2 that Jesus tasted death for us. He was made lower than angels for a time and He tasted death for me. I was shaving my entire face tonight and sometimes you accidentally pluck a hair, 1 hair, and man does it hurt. In Isaiah 50 it says that Jesus gave His back to be beaten, his beard to be plucked...what...his beard. He laid all of this down for us, He tasted death for our sins, He left his place on high, for a sinful man like me, he came to die. (I love that song).

So I say all that to say please pray for me. I struggle with focus and have a hard time settling down. I think God has me in a corporate job and a normal life for a season to teach me things. I am tired of being complacent and desire to change. Whew, I feel better.

manly, arrrrrr

I'm not a John Eldredge fan and really have never liked his books.  Anywho, I couldn't help but think of him this weekend because it was a get 'er done weekend.  Being a homeowner, you are faced with things like the garage door not working, the garbage disposal breaks, and the hot water heater isn't doing you like it should.  Saturday was take the garbage disposal apart with roomie Eddie, check.  There is nothing like taking something completely apart and putting it back together and the sound you hear after you get all the pieces in line.  Ahhh, we can now throw pieces of food, oranges, and small kittens down there again...I mean...Next it was on to the Hot water heater.  My wife (saunders gibbes), wait, that's a joke.  Anywho, he had been saying that we didn't have much hot water and I noticed the same.  Not that we shower together.  Gross.  Well it would be a way to save water but highly homosexual.  Crawled under the house and was reminded of my father.  My dad is the hardest working man I know.  Even over 50, he still crawls under houses and fixes peoples' heat pumps.  I was reminded that he taught me about hard work and you should always do things right the first time.  I remember sticking around jobsites an extra hour just to make sure the smallest details were done right.  Most people would have left, not my dad, he did it right.  So I was reminded of those childhood days of crawling under houses and thankful that my house has a huge crawl space.  Honestly, why am I sharing all this, I really wanted to just say that I got the hot water heater fixed.  Now to test it out, what do you do?  You take an extremely long shower! OF course!  It was a good excuse and I was reminded in there that I have too many plans.  I have a huge struggle with focus.  I have so many things I want to do and I never really stop to just do one of them.  I sit around and think of all the things I want to do.  I have made up mind to stop doing this and do at least one of my projects. 

On another note, I thought I was going to Cali this week, but a change of plans, now I'm heading out to Houston tomorrow and then West Virginia!  Woo hoo!  And another note, thanks to my big brother and his kindness and connections, I got my first radio commercial!  It will air in Florence, SC for about a week, and I think around 70 times.  Poor people, they are going to be tired of hearing about the mortgage business :)

Sandy won't like this

So many people joke about Sandy and I being roomies and think it's funny. I have proof that I am the man of the relationship :)

For those who do not know, Sandy is a boy.

something that matters

I usually try to share things on my blog that encourage people or make them laugh.  Today is for your encouragement cup :)

Plane Grounds Because of Flatulence

There are many things you don't want to be known for.  This happens to be one of them.  I wish there was more to the story.  What did she eat?  Where did she get the food from?  These are valid questions. 

Songs of the Luke Warm Church

...from my friend Ray Comfort :)


1. Blest Be The Tie That Doesn't Cramp
My Style

2. Pillow of Ages, Fluffed for Me

3. I Surrender Some

4. I'm Fairly Certain That My Redeemer Lives

5. Sit Up, Sit Up For Jesus

6. Take My Life and Let Me Be

7. What An Acquaintance We Have In Jesus

8. Where He Leads Me, I Will Consider Following

9. He's Quite a Bit To Me

10.Oh, How I Like Jesus

11. Fill My Spoon, Lord

12. It Is My Secret What God Can Do

The last few weeks

Ashley's Wedding

So one of my best friends got married a few weekends ago, Ashley Anderson, now Ashley Jones. This was one of the most fun weddings. Ashley had asked me to drive the photographer around all weekend and kinda be there to video him doing his thing. His name is David Edmonson and this guy was good. It was really neat to be around someone who had such a talent for photography. He has done a lot of the photos for bands like Jars of Clay, Third Day, Mercy Me etc. We had a great time and it was neat to see what happens on the other side of the camera and how he set up shots etc.

Back to the wedding. It was so fun to be around people that I haven't seen in a while. The rehearsal dinner is always my favorite and I just love hearing everyone talk and their stories of fun times and their encouraging words to the couple. I just love it. The reception was another fun part, we danced for hours! It seemed that everyone was dancing, even the old people! We left the reception and went out to dance for a few more hours, I just love fun times. Also you can find Ashley's wedding book here, wow, talk about awesome.

And another one here.

I also went down to Brookgreen Gardens to visit my family for Thanksgiving. We have had our dinner there for the past few years. If you are ever near Myrtle Beach and you enjoy nature, you must stop by! My cousin Mike surprised us with some oysters he went to the ocean to get. MMMM. I love them. Some of the pictures below might disturb you.

Thanksgiving 2006

Fueled Up and Ready to Go

I feel like the rocket is fueled, the food has been stored in a nice little compartment, I'm ready for the trip. I am nice and seat-belted in, but God is up there in the control tower and He has started this extremely long count-down!

Have you ever felt like that? I keep reminding myself that Jesus didn't really start his full-time ministry until he was around 30. He spent many years just being a working man and living among people and was one of them. I am going to give a schedule of what I would like to have one day, this should be fun...

1....wake up, pray with my wife (hint hint God), go read, then head to the airport
2...arrive at airport, buy something fatty and strike up a conversation with someone and share with them.
3...arrive at destination city, speak to a group of people who will leave and go out and share their faith...go have dinner with some of those people, get to know each other, have a good time. Go to sleep.
4...wake up next morning and jump in a cab, do a radio show interview with Todd Friel, and head back to the airport (and hopefully get to share with the cab driver)
5...get to airport, do it all over again, but this time, try a different kinda muffin or fatty doughnut.
6...have a hot wife waiting at the airport who loves me and wants to have about 3-4 kids and maybe adopt 1 :)
7....have dinner with that same hot wife who loves Jesus and see what happened while I was gone. I would also like to end dinner with a fat piece of cheesecake.
8...step 8 has been intentionally left blank. :)

Response to "Bullhorn Guy" Video by NOOMA

I have been a fan of some of the NOOMA videos since I discovered them about a year ago. One problem I have with some of them is the "Jesus Loves You" type of reaching people. Basically, sitting and listening to someone without ever really telling them the truth of the gospel. It's one thing to listen to people and show them that you care, but it's another thing to willingly not share with them for fear that they will not like you.

You just gotta laugh

So last night I went up to Winthrop to speak at their FCA. Beforehand we met at Zaxby's and I actually tried the grilled cheese. I have been against the grilled cheese for a long time, only because it is expensive and I just can't see paying for it! Anyway, FCA insisted paying for my meal and I wasn't that hungry (imagine that) so I had the grilled cheese. It was quite wonderful :)

So we left and went over to FCA. We played ping pong a little while and then I ended up meeting a guy there and we struck up a conversation. We had many things in common, he liked editing videos and doing things with sound, and he also was a magician on the side. So we talked about illusions and fun tricks, it was a good conversation. He needed some voiceover help for his magic show videos and I am very willing to help. So I went up to speak and talked about evangelism, imagine that. I have felt in the past few years to equip believers in evangelism. Most of the church today just seems really inefficient and the whole "invite someone to church" mentality is not Biblical! I just want people to see that they can be the church to the world and it's not about bringing people back into the huddle and assimilating them. After I spoke and FCA was over, the guy I met at the beginning walked up to me smiling. He hadn't realized that I was going to be the speaker that night and said, "there was a reason that you and I bumped into each other and started talking." I laughed and agreed. He ended up pouring his heart out and asking tough questions about Catholicism etc. He had grown up Catholic and then ended up leaving to become a Mormon. After some time there, he started reading the Bible for himself and realized he was in a cult. Now he is a believer and is living for the Lord. He started asking about prayer to Mary and is that right? This guy was realizing that a lot of his friends were not Christians. Something just kinda came over our conversation right in the middle of it, and we both started praying. It might sound a little strange, but it was quite amazing. I just loves those times when you know the Lord is right there with you and is speaking through you. So I got home last night and sent him lots of good information, convenient in God's plan, He had me listening to sermons on prayer to Mary etc the week before, He knows what He is doing!

So I leave FCA and I was pretty much on cloud 9. I really believe I went there last night just to be encouraged by that man and to encourage him. So I'm driving down a long long highway for about an hour with no radio just really being all spiritual you know. haha. You know those times when you just sit there and don't do anything, just sit in silence and awe that you serve a good God! Well right as I'm in this thought, I realize that I'm still on earth and there are speed limits. Yes, blue lights in my rear view. Ouch. He asks me if I was in a hurry and I told him that I was in my own world and didn't even realize I was doing 65 in a 35. He asked where I was coming from, "sir I am embarrassed to tell you that I just got back from speaking at an FCA." He laughed and said "ah man sometimes even police officers speed, but you just know that the state troopers out there will write you a ticket." He also told me that there were many deer on the road, he let me go :)

Of course, I left with that feeling you get and a deeper understanding of Grace! I was speaking with a friend on the telephone and we were talking about picking people up on the side of the road. I just love it. Well I kid you not, as soon as I get off the phone, I pull over to get gas. This guy walks right up to me at the pump and guess what he needs, a RIDE! I just laughed out loud and told him that I just got off the phone with a friend and we were talking about people on the side of the road. I told him to jump in my Jeep and conveniently he lived about 2-3 miles down the road from me in Pendleton. Are you telling me that God doesn't plan things out? Man. We had a good conversation and I dropped him off.

I can't wait for a day when I can have this kinda life on a day to day basis instead of a month to month! Eternity is always around the corner.

A good talk

Lately I have been learning about encouragement and its many forms. I have never really considered myself a great "personal" encourager. I feel like I have the ability to encourage large groups but really fail at encouraging people singular. After becoming a part of a local church, I've met people who are so good at encouragement and I've just learned so much through it. It can come in the form of words directly spoken to encourage or in a good talk. Lee and I talked about 2 hours last night and when I woke up this morning, I thought about how great of a talk it was and how much more encouraged I was. It's funny how when the Lord chooses to teach you something, He just goes for it in multiple cases. For me, He tells me something and then He will confirm it over and over, and over.

I also have just started listening to John MacArthur's Podcast and absolutely love it. He's one of the best teachers I've heard in a while and if you dig great teaching and not so much the "topical" sermons, he is your guy. I feel like when I listen to topical sermons, it seems like you hear the same stuff over and over, just packaged in a different theme or style. Of course there is always debate over that one but I think this sums it up best. "Give a man a fish, feed him for a day, teach a man to fish, feed him for a lifetime." Expository preaching teaches you how to really understand and open the Bible. I will say that topical type teaching is awesome for a new believer but there comes a point as Peter says that you must move on the meat and get away from the milk. I'm going to head up to the big Winthrop to speak at fca tomorrow, I've got lots of things on my heart, we'll see if the thoughts come out.

Booger eater is back!

So many of you will call me disgusting as you should.  But I must share this story.  A few weeks ago, I told a story of a guy eating boogers right in front of me!  So I will give him the benefit of the doubt in that he may not have realized he went straight from his nose to his mouth and then followed up with a finger roll.  A finger roll is what you do after you eat Kentucky Fried Chicken or Zaxby's.  It's when you lick all of your fingers and enjoy every ounce of it.  Well today, the booger eater returned.  There was a different strategy this time though, he didn't eat a booger.  Honestly, I don't know what he was eating.  He would play with his face then proceed to lick his fingers.  Okay, so I couldn't even stop watching him, I really just wanted to interrupt this person, but how do you do that?

"Excuse me sir, I notice that you have been eating boogers and other random things on your body, are you hungry?"  There is no easy way to do this so I will sit idly by and continue to watch this guy enjoy random things that he does.  It's amazing and I am just so wishing there was someone close to me that I could tell so they could see it is true.  Don't call me mean, YOU know you would do the same thing! 

So on to better things that actually mean something.  Church was awesome this morning and usually things go pretty smoothly, not today.  The video died and I couldn't get any of the words to display on the screen, most of the words were about 2 verses behind what they should be, we had some major software problems.  In all of that, I really just sat there kinda laughing outside and on the inside in that, I'm glad the Lord does not depend on everything we do to be perfect.  I'm glad He can use broken video, broken hearts, and really just broken people to do His will.  It's quite amazing.

Father Appointed Consequences

I've never really believed in coincidences. I believe the Lord appoints these times and if coincidences are real, then he created them :) I always feel like I'm changing God's will when I change my seat on an airplane. I am tall and I like to have a seat that is in the emergency exit or aisle. Well today, I changed my seat and I had that thought of...well God what if you really wanted me to sit in 46E? Ha, not really but you get my point.

I ended up sitting beside a woman that was friendly. She invited me to share a armrest with her. I usually try and strike up conversation on the plane but after a long week of work, I was beat. I really just wanted to lay back and sleep. I ended up waking myself up and she told me I had been snoring, then she said, "just kidding." We ended up having a really good conversation about the Lord and probably talked about 45 minutes. It was really neat in that we both shared things with each other that really encouraged both of us. I told her about witnessing and evangelism and she told me about dating, life, and marriage. I left the plane and the conversation just full of joy and felt good about life. It's amazing had I not changed my seat or went to sleep the whole time in the new seat, I would have missed out on a blessing.

Just a little Snack

So I woke up this morning to get ready to head back home.  Well this is where I must confess that I ate a huge piece of bread pudding with a special syrup w/ pecans and BlueBelle Icecream on top.  I'm talking like...right now, I want to eat all of it but it is about the size of a 1/2 acre.  I know that if I do eat all of it, it will cause some havoc in my stomach right in the middle of a flight.  And THAT is the worst feeling.  So I think I am going to throw it away, whew....done.

I also saw a story yesterday about people, like you and me, who eat out the garbage.  They are called Freegans.  They go to grocery stores and dig in their trash for food.  Now they can afford to buy food but they don't want to cause waste and are upset at the people who do.  It was interesting story.  One guy has lived out of the trash for 10 years!  They go and dig it out, take it home, clean it, and then cook it for a meal.  Amazing. 

RightGuard

So something gross happened the other day.  Usually I am not a big "sweater."  I can do a lot of work and I rarely sweat.  Well, the other day something different happened.  I am down in Tampa this week teaching a few classes and for some unknown reason, I was a sweat pit stained guy.  Right in the middle of teaching a class, I happened to see that I was sweating.  Well what does that mean?  That means that I didn't want to raise my arms up the whole time I was teaching.  It was a really strange feeling and I'm sure I looked weird.  I'm not sure what was up with my PH that day but it was bad.  But I didn't smell funny, I just had a lot of sweat.  Well, I finished teaching my class and came back to the hotel and changed.  I added RightGuard onto my grocery list at the hotel.  It was nice, when I came in, my two bottles of RightGuard were waiting on me :)  Is that what it's like to be married?  Send in the list and there it goes :)

More from Halloween

So every year we have to dress up at work and pass out candy to our entire company. This is what we had to do this year :)

Halloween at Work

Before Bed

Lord help me cipher this heart out, I think I have the outer pieces, just can't figure the middle out.

Proverbs 20:5
"The purposes of a man's heart are deep waters,
       but a man of understanding draws them out."

Halloween at Canterbury!

Halloween Party

So I know I always talk about parties and how much I love them...and today, I will again. So we planned a Halloween party about a week ago and nobody really responded. Usually when we have parties, a ton of people respond and come and it's so much fun. But again, nobody responded and on Monday I was like, "hey let's just not have it, not many people are going to come." The roomies and I talked it over and decided that we should have it anyway. It wasn't the biggest party we have ever had but it was still JUST RIGHT. We had so much fun! I don't think I have danced that much in a long time and my gorilla suit was proof of it! I stood in the yard before the party and scared people, oh how fun.

Perry had written a blog a while back about seeing cars pull into the parking lot and how excited that got him to know that so many people were coming to church. I think in many people who have the gift of evangelism, people just make you come alive. There is something unexplainable that happens when you see people come together and especially in a ministry setting. I know our party wasn't reaching the world with the gospel but it still just reminded me of what Heaven will be like (minus a few Tupac songs that played) and it just makes me happy. I like the big banquet idea and I like lots of food, and people shaking hands, hugging, and caring about each other. I like the idea of the focus being on what is around you and not being on yourself and being selfish. I like knowing people are having a good time and for a moment, life is good to them and they are experiencing fun and joy, and all those other fun Godly words :)

I'm just doing a lot of rambling because my eyes are tired, my legs are weak, my back is wet, my neck is soaked, i'm nasty, and just ready for bed :)

I was challenged earlier in the week to "remember the gospel." Not just to believe and be happy that you are a Christian, but to remember the One who was tortured, beaten, whipped, cursed, bruised, and murdered to give you a fountain of grace to drink from. I like what one of our pastors at church said...Jesus didn't die this private death, He didn't live his life in a cave, or in the woods, or somewhere crazy like the religious cult leaders. He blessed people publicly, healed them publicly, loved them publicly, judged them publicly, and ...okay, this sermon must end. Remember Him, okay?

Observations

I noticed something yesterday at church that I have never really paid attention to.  I've been helping on occasion with the sound which basically means I sit near the booth and help them adjust.  As I was sitting there yesterday, we sang a lot of really good songs.  I'm training myself to listen to each instrument and pick it out etc, so I was listening pretty intently.  All of the band quit playing and everyone was singing without any music, what I noticed was that I could hear everyone breathing in.  It was pretty neat to hear that many people just taking a deep breath of something God created and using it to praise the One who gave it. 

Voiceover

So like I've been yapping about, I started working in voiceovers a few months back. It has been a test of patience! It's much like acting, you send demo after demo, after demo and hear nothing. I am now over 200 demos into it and still nothing. Either way, it has been fun. The sickening part is, I sit in my mini-studio (walk-in closet converted) for about 2 hours per day, I would say that is at the LEAST. I have really enjoyed it so far.

The demo below was for an old 1940's style newsreel. The way they used to report the news, they are fun to do.

Protect Yourself

So a few years ago, I read an article about the dangers of cell phone, laptops, and other hot objects and their effect on sperm. This alarmed me. I use a cell phone, on average, about 1.5 - 2 hours a day. I used my laptop literally on my lap for at least 1 hour everyday. The research was saying that it can reduce sperm count and cause infertility. This alarmed me. A friend of mine bought me a nice little lap pad that can protect you while you use your laptop. It's basically just a flat surface on top with a bean bag on the bottom to absorb the heat. It has worked well over the past two years. I've also tried using my headset in the Jeep to cut down on the amount of time the phone is near my body. The problem is that often I just jump in the car and forget about it and where does the cell phone go...right between my legs.

I write this article to warn all of the men and to encourage the women to go out and buy your man a lappad for his future. This lappad could help your future! There are many places you can buy them, just google!!

Rumors

"And you will be hearing of wars an rumors of wars; see that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. "For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines, and pestilence's and earthquakes. "But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs." Matthew 24:3-8
Sometimes, I guess when I read these type of verses, it doesn't really hit me that this is REALLY going to happen and could already be happening. Just today, there was an earthquake in central North Carolina, how odd and the other day there was one in Hawaii. Daily we are bombarded with rumors of wars and news of the real wars that are going on around the world. There is talk about North Korea and if any of the nations will invade them or if North Korea will actually attack China or surrounding countries. These things Jesus told us about so that we would be encouraged to go out and keep sharing the gospel. Jesus also said that some would grow cold because of the iniquity that was around and the lawnessness. I feel that I have grown cold in many ways. I read Ray Comfort's column last night and it challenged me to how cold I've gotten. When I read his story, it got me really excited and I remember when I used to have stories similar to his. He goes out and does ridiculously crazy things but the gospel is always preached and people come to know Jesus.

A group of friends and I were walking downtown Greenville the other night and a man stopped me. He handed a gospel tract towards my way and I told him that I was a believer and smiled. He then said, "Pray for us." It didn't really hit me until after someone in our group said something to the effect of..."you wonder why people do that and if anyone ever really gets saved etc?" I didn't really say anything much at the time but it did make me think. 2% of the church actually shares the gospel according to statistics. I'm sure if I would have probed my group that night, not one of us had shared the gospel but yet willing to criticize someone else for passing out a tract and trying. When Paul was in prison once, there were people outside the prison that were preaching Jesus so that Paul's chains would be tighter. They didn't sincerely care about Jesus or the gospel, but they wanted to make it tougher for Paul. Paul's response summed up, "I don't really care what motives they have, I just care that Christ is preached." God can take the words of shy, ignorant, greedy, unloving people and make something happen .

Palm Springs

There are certainly those days or weeks when you enjoy your job just a little more.
This happens to be one of those weeks. :)
Now let's just pray that I can be motivated to workout, hmmmmm.

more confessions...

So I'm getting more and more comfortable to confessing my sins.  Today I went to workout and while doing the elliptical, I watched part of "My Best Friend's Wedding."

another confession

Confession 1:  Okay, so I watched a Lifetime movie last night.  It said "Phenomenon II."  I saw the first one with John Travolta and liked it.  I decided to watch the 2nd one.  I was really upset this morning because I fell asleep before the ending. 

Confession 2:  I drank a SlimFast shake on the way to work.  I will not drink another shake.  That has to be one of the worst things I've had in a long time.  Maybe I just got the wrong flavor, I thought Stawberry would be good.  Now I feel like I can have a sensible meal for dinner.

Starbucks

Read this link in the title before you read any further.

Starbucks has a program where they print quotes on their cups that express opinions from many different people. The question I have for people is this. Starbucks has given money to gay rights organizations and many other organizations such as Planned Parenthood. The question I have is...at what point should a Christian stop supporting these type of companies? Now I know that everyone loves Starbucks and it really does have great coffee. I am not a big fan of boycotting places but when I see these type of companies giving money to organizations that support abortion, that's a tough one. What are your thoughts?

just an idea

Okay, just to give you an idea of the type of industry I currenty work in, let me share with you a quote.  Part of my job is to teach and attend classes around the US on things pertaining to our business.  In a class I was taking today, the presenter started the class with this....

"I will treat this class like a skirt, short enough to keep your attention and long enough to cover the essentials." 

Yes, I could not help but to laugh out loud in class.  Amazing.

things you do and don't know why

I'm in Arkansas this week for work and as usual, I frolic around in the hotel room as soon as I enter.  Okay, not really, but I realized that if the room has two double beds, I always pick the one that's closest to the window.  Have you ever wondered why we do the small things we do?  Like, I never realized that I like this bed the most until today. 

I met a man on the plane who just got back from Iraq & Italy.  He is in the military and actually got shot by an AK47 a few times in the chest, thankfully he was wearing a bullet-proof suit.  I really wasn't excited about talking to him and I never once witnessed to him.  It's like sometimes, I can hear the Lord telling me in my spirit to do something and I disobey.  I think I was really tired and really just wanted to sleep.  What a poor excuse. 

speakeasy

You know what's reallly neat? God gave us tastebuds.  He could have just given us food and we could have just eaten for nourishment, but He chose to go the extra step and give us a sense of taste.  I love that this wasn't an accident of evolution but a conscious thought of our creator who loves us and wants good things.

I hate to be childish, but I saw someone eat a booger today.  I am 90% sure that he did it.  I was just sitting and being my natural people watcher self I noticed this incident.  First, I am not a germ-o-phobe, but I don't like to drink after people and I know all the people I work with and whether they wash their hands or not in the restroom :)  Well I saw this guy today, he was digging in his nose pretty good.  It wasn't just a rub because it was itching, it was a full fledge nose pick.  I am grossed out by this, not because I don't pick my own nose, but because this man is picking his violenty and in public.  I have another friend who also picks his nose in public and his wife hates it, not to mention any names.  Well right after this guy picks his nose, he starts touching things that I know other people will touch.  Well, then he goes back in for a 2nd time, but this time, he immediately does a KFC finger licking roll.  I am not kidding you.  His finger went straight from his nose to not only one finger in his mouth, but he put at least 3 of them in there in sort of a rolling pattern.  I ALMOST vomited right there, okay, not really, but I was pretty grossed out.  I realized that I am too self-conscious, because even I know when I rub my nose and I am very aware that I don't want it to look like I'm picking it.  I don't know if this guy realized his finger went from the nose to mouth, but I did.

In other news, I have found myself lately thinking about eternity more.  I feel like I analyze things too much, as noted in this blog, but on a serious note, I realized something in the past week.  It wasn't anything new, just a reminder.  I was talking to a co-worker about life.  I told him that life, our time here, is really only a dot on the map of the grand scheme.  We are here in this life, and to us, it seems that this is it, this is our big focus.  But in the grand scheme of our creator, this is only a blinking of an eye.  I am realizing that the only thing that matters is that the things I do will either influence eternity or not, and really, all things effect eternity.  I find time just passing and me not changing the way I know I should.  I have this thought that I'm going to wake up 30 years from now and be like, what the crap, I've wasted it. 

I talked with a guy at church today who was in his 60's.  He told me that looking back, he wished he could have done something he was passionate about.  He said that most people spend their life doing a job because it's the right thing to do, but they don't really feel passionate about it.  He told me that the greatest thing is when you can find something you are passionate about.  I have passed this guy numerous times and only remembered him as the guy who never remembered my name.  When I actually took the time to talk to him, I found that he had a lot of knowledge and was really encouraging to talk to.  Now, I know his name. 

As Todd Friel would say, Go Serve Your King.

day 2 of 21

So I hear it takes 21 days to make a habit.  I am on Day 2 of that 21 in getting up early in the morning to work out.  Today was fairly easy to my surprise.  It might have had something to do with the fact that I slept about 15 hours yesterday, just maybe.  I do feel a lot better and have a tons more energy during the day it seems.  I have no goal of being "the hulk" but I do want to shape up!  They installed tvs on each of the machines so that's a good way to get my mind off the fact that it's 6AM and I'm working out.  We'll see. 

thoughts

I have always been amazed at the story of Billy Graham. I love the way he started out and just the history of his life and how many people have come to know the Lord because of him. Here is my wanderings today...I've listened to a few interviews lately by Graham on Larry King Live and his latest article in Newsweek. Read this excerpt and tell me what you think. It's tough for me to read because I feel that there is a huge confusion among Christians of today as to whether Jesus really is the gateway to heaven and the only way. This is a truth that our faith hinges on and if there are other ways then what Jesus did might have been crazy. The excerpt below was taken out of Newsweek and the whole article can be found here. Mark Cahill also wrote an article about this in his latest newsletter and he brings out some good points also.

"A unifying theme of Graham's new thinking is humility. He is sure and certain of his faith in Jesus as the way to salvation. When asked whether he believes heaven will be closed to good Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus or secular people, though, Graham says: "Those are decisions only the Lord will make. It would be foolish for me to speculate on who will be there and who won't ... I don't want to speculate about all that. I believe the love of God is absolute. He said he gave his son for the whole world, and I think he loves everybody regardless of what label they have." Such an ecumenical spirit may upset some Christian hard-liners, but in Graham's view, only God knows who is going to be saved: "As an evangelist for more than six decades, Mr. Graham has faithfully proclaimed the Bible's Gospel message that Jesus is the only way to Heaven," says Graham spokesman A. Larry Ross. "However, salvation is the work of Almighty God, and only he knows what is in each human heart."

working hard...

You know, I bought some equipment to start recording voiceovers for radio, tv, etc.  They say it's a lot like acting, some people spend a long time and go to many auditions before they get their first job.  I come home everyday almost and work a few hours.  I sit in my walk in closet that has been converted to a mini-recording studio.  It looks pretty funny if you have never seen it.   I've just now sent in my 100th demo.  whew!!!  Please pray that something would happen :)  I guess I'll stay in the closet until something happens :)

It's been fun either way and I have a few fun projects going on the side that some of you will benefit from :)

somewhere to go

So it was an interesting week in El Paso, the food was good, but I do not want Mexican food for a long time, okay, I'll settle for eating it on Wednesday :). I like to go to new places and eat all different types of food that I can't get in my own town, I never like to go to chain places, boooo. I was glad to get back on Friday but so TIRED! Of course, I should have taken a day off to rest, but no, I woke up early in the morning and went dirtbiking in GA. I realized something when I was driving over to a friends house. It's a lot easier to put gas in your vehicle, motorcycle, etc when you know where you are going. Basically, when you have a goal that you will enjoy. Like, it's a lot easier putting gas in my dirtbike when I know I'm going somewhere fun. It's a lot easier putting gas in my Jeep when there is a cool trip planned and you're not just putting expensive gas to get back and forth to work. I feel like it's a lot like our relationship with the Lord. It just seems so much easier to read the Word and pray when we have a "path" to go on. When we have some type of idea where our life is heading etc. Sometimes maybe God doesn't want us to have that, sometimes He does, I just know it's a lot easier when we know where we are going and are excited about it.

As you can see from the picture here, I made a few falls that were quite fun. It's just a rush to jump hills and not really know where you will land. In this picture, I almost took a stump out, that would have really been quite painful and probably would have broken a few bones. Thankfully, I slid in right before the stump :) One of my friends came to take pictures of this event, how nice.

Hola, Que Tal!

So I am in El Paso this week teaching some classes.  The last time I was here, I hopped across the border into Mexico and it was the funniest thing.  One gringo among about 400 Mexicans, making our way, legally, across the border.  The agents at the border see thousands a people a day and this guy recongnized me, mainly because the day before I was, again, 1 gringo among 400 Mexicans.  Since then, I have discovered that what I did was very dangerous and I was an idiot.  I will not be going to Juarez this time around :) 

In other news, the weird things cease to stop happening to me.  Sept. 11th has always been a special day in my mind, for years before 09-11 I would have weird occurances that made me think of 9-11 and after 9-11 happened, it made it even weirder.  Yesterday, this guy called me out the blue to tell me his salvation story and some things that were going on in his life and some of the people we both know.  Just really random, but I learned a lot from the call and was glad to talk to him.  I am not complaining about these "different" things that are happening, I am starting to like them :)

Now I'm off to find some Mexican food, NOT.

Pretty Mouth

So usually every 2-3 weeks, I make my way to my local Great Clips. I've been going there since it opened about 6 years ago and a few of the same girls have been cutting my hair(s) for all these years. I always like going into Great Clips because we always have good conversations. It's neat because one of the girls will talk about church etc. and it's a good way to let the time pass and everyone in the store ends up listening. (Eph. 4:29) It's fun. We laugh, joke, and I always have a good time in there. Well last Friday was a little different story. I went in around 6 or so as I usually do and sat down. I waited for about 30 minutes and still no haircut, but hey, no problem, I'm a patient guy. Around 15 minutes into my waiting, a co-worker comes in and we begin to talk. Around this same time, another guy walks in, we shall call him "big dude." Well Big Dude was not really into the waiting thing, he gets up after he had waited a long time and makes it known to the stylist that he is not happy with the service. He didn't do it in a way that was very nice. I just pretended that I didn't hear him and kept chatting with my co-worker. Well, my name is called. It's so fun when they call your name, because I know my buzz cut will be done in about 15 minutes. A girl that has cut my hair(s) before takes me back. She was a little upset that the Big Dude was so upset. She made it clear that she would "hook him up" if he sat in her chair. I responded, "ahh, nah you wouldn't do that, you are too good for that." She laughed. Well we chatted about the service industry, restaurants, and serving people. After this we talked about Clemson, where we liked to eat, and just general stuff. Well she finished cutting my hair(s) and I got up to walk up and pay. As I get up front, I hear someone say in a loud voice, "You've got a pretty mouth!" I look up to the left of me and see this big dude standing there looking at me. I look him in shock and say "excuse me?" He says, "you've got a pretty mouth!" At this point I should have thanked him for his kind compliment to my parents' genes and my Lord who formed me in the womb, but I chose not to. I pretty much say something to the effect of "dude what are you talking about." He then says something to the effect of *$#*$#(*$#(*$#(*$#(*$*%(#*%* and I'll *#(*(*#(%*#(%*#%*. I look at him kindly and say, "we were talking about chinese restaurants." I then sign my receipt and then the story gets interesting. He then looks at me and says, "If you ever come up to the *it*y bar, I will let you #*$#(*$#($*#*#(". Well let's just say that I can't write it on my blog. I think it was a gesture of apology for him making a fool of himself, but I am not sure. The stylist apologized to me and gave me a "sorry" card from Great Clips that gives you a discount on your next haircut. Ha. Ya know, I prayed a long time ago that God would give me stories to share Him with others. I prayed for crazy stories. I am getting to a point where crazy things are starting to happen to me but I am usually so shocked that I haven't quite made the transition to the spiritual. I am working on it.

Another man grabbed me last weekend out of nowhere and asked me if I was experiencing spiritual warfare. This man was probably in his 60's and had a long white beard. He told me that if I was not, I would eventually face it. So weird. We talked for a few minutes and he ended up being a nice guy, we had a nice chat. I feel like I have a sign on me that attracts "different" types of people. I'm not complaining, I actually kinda like it. :)

On another note, I went wakeboarding with Ed and Julie on Saturday. We had a good time and Ed finally hit a backflip for me to see. I had heard he could do it, but hadn't seen it. Well in the process, I did get some nice footage of all his falls and hardwork. I share it with you here.

Be Prepared

I found this video through Way of the Master radio and was created by the Great News Network I do believe. This is one of the most unique and amazingly convicting videos I have seen in a long time. The punchline is at the end of the video, man.

On another note, this brings up a talk I heard recently on the same program. John MacArthur had given a message on using the church as a tool to entertain people and then evangelize. He talks about bringing tares in with the wheat. The believers are supposed to go out and the heart of evangelism is not bringing people to church. The problem today seems to be that most Christians believe this to be evangelism. Jesus did not put a sign on the upper room and ask people to be there at 7:30. We would never be Christians today if that were the case. He went out into the highways and biways. How can we change the focus of evangelism from "invite people to church" to teaching people to evangelize? They say that 95% of the church has never led someone to Christ...is there something wrong with this?

I hope you enjoy the video.

Yes, I did this

I usually don't like to do these sorts of things but Ed did it, and he saw that Lee did it, and Lee copied that stripper he met...wait, that last part is not true :)


I love Jesus
I like people
I love speaking about Jesus to large groups of people
I like big parties with lots of strangers
I like burgers at big parties
I also like oysters at big parties
I like Mike Rowe in "Dirty Jobs"
I like Johnny Cash and his story and his deep voice
I like people who are friendly to drive-through workers
I love theology
I love motorcycles
I do not like raw onions
I like cooked onions
I like riding dirtbikes and motorcycles
I like to talk geek with Stunningman
I do not like getting lost
I rarely lose my temper, I can count 3 times in my life that I've somewhat lost it
I am very patient
I like computers
I am not a big fan of camping when it rains a lot
I like doc martens, big soles, and wide.
I like Jeep Wranglers.
I do not like waking up early in the morning
I like staying up late
I worry very little
I am very easy going
I like picking up hitch-hikers
I like wakeboarding with Ed
I like practicing voice overs and being a radio guy.
I like doing impersonations.
I do not like spandex
I would like a few kids and maybe adopt 1
I probably need a wife first
I do not like math
I currently work as an application engineer (hmm)
I love evangelism and teaching it
I like Ray Comfort
I can be a hopeless romantic (did I just confess that)
I like "Lost"
I like Jack Bauer in "24"
I still do not like getting lost
I like to ski but don't have snow
I enjoy being nice to people
I love to meet strangers
I want to have some type of "unique" ministry someday
I have 3 worldy dreams
1-Sky Dive , check
2-Rent Crazily Nice Car in cool city, check
3-I can't quite share #3 yet.
I don't like hurting people's feelings
I am confrontational
I like sitting in my closet/recording thingy and making funny voices
I am sensitive
I love studying apologetics
I once dated someone, broke up, and she got engaged about 3 weeks later
I like playing guitar but I am not good
I love to sing but not in front of people
I, so okay, I liked "The Notebook"
I hope to one day work for myself and have time to do things that mean something
I like my Black & Decker Blower, I use it once a week
I like to take things apart
I enjoy naps on Sundays when there is lots of rain, a blanket, and a comfy couch.
I like sectional couches
I want to fly planes one day
I do not like sand
I like to pressure wash
I do not like poison ivy...
I like dreaming and thinking of inventions but am not good at putting them together
I think blogging is fun
I love sleeping by the river in the mountains, w/o rain of course
I love to eat at new places that nobody knows about and then tell everyone
I do not like when puppies poop on the floor
I like when puppies poop outside
I enjoy making strangers feel comfortable
I like discussions with Mormons and Jehovah's Witnesses
I like having a huge group of random friends
I must become less, He must become greater

Is this it?

I've caught myself getting caught up in politics of life and work etc.  You go to work everyday, you do your job, you work hard.  Is this it?  Is life just about making a paycheck and waiting on a promotion?  What a boring life, what a meaningless life that would be if that's all there was to this life.  I've thought about this a lot.  I think I have figured a little something out in my own life.  When my focus is off of the Lord and His Will, I can get caught up in the day to day.  I can find myself just going to work, thinking like the rest of the world, thinking almost like a lost person.  The cool thing I like about the way the Lord deals with me is this.  He never gives up on me.  He knows what I need to get me back and thinking clearly and focus my mind back on Him. 

I used to pick people up on the side of the road all of the time.  I've shared stories about that before on here.  It's the most amazing thing, some of the stories I've heard and just being able to hear the story of strangers.  I haven't picked anyone up in a long time it seems like.  I was leaving work today, after a long week at work, and just in processing thoughts, feelings etc.  A heavy week.  Well I'm leaving the office and I see two people on the side of the road.  I ask them if they need help and they need a ride, so they jump in my Jeep.  These were the sweetest people.  They were the most country people you could meet.  Their car broke down and the police had it towed away.  They didn't have any way to get home the day before so they had to sleep on the floor at someones house.  I had a bag full of chips in the back of my Jeep that they started eating.  (Thanks to Julie Edwards who gave them to me) They hadn't eaten anything, they were tired, thirsty, and just worn out.  We found their car and it need a new fuel pump.  They needed a ride to a town about 20 minutes away.  I honestly was tired and really didn't feel like going that far out the way.  It's funny how the Lord will bless you when you are obedient.  I gave them a ride and it gave us a chance to talk.  I heard about their life and what they had been through and really just paid attention to their story and where they were going.  They talked about how they really just wanted to get married.  I thought they were married, but I guess they were just dating.  We got to talk about the Lord and I found out that they were believers.  They were happy to finally get home and I was happy that the Lord encouraged my heart through talking to them. 

I've also learned that it is not cool to have poison ivy in randomly scary places on your body.  I don't think I have consistently woke up so early in the morning in my life.  Just scratching.  I feel like this is a temporary thorn in my flesh :)  Literally!  It's also not cool to have to get a shot in the hip.  I'm such a baby.

Questions...

Is there something wrong with this article?  Read it and tell me if this seems normal to you.

just like a kid again

When I was a kid, we would play in our neighborhood all the time.  We would go back as far in the woods as the river would let us, sometimes we would even push that line.  I loved being in the woods but occasionally bad things would happen.  Like the time my buddy Chad built a fort out of vines.  Vines that happened to be poison ivy and that I am extremely allergic to.  After spending the day in this fort and waking up the next morning with no sight, I realized that playing in a fort made of poison ivy was not good.  I had it in my eyes, throat, face, and well, you name it.  It's been years since I've had it.  I have to go the doctor immediately.  My mom said I looked like the elephant man.  It was bad. 

Well I woke up about 5AM this morning in torment.  Let's just say that I have poison ivy again and it's not in the best place.  It's on my face, my arms, my legs, and ...well let's just say the worst place it could be.  This is not fun. :(

JT

Lick the Bowl

Psalm 51:17 (New International Version)

17 The sacrifices of God are ^[a] a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart,
O God, you will not despise.

I know I have talked about this verse before, but I really do think it's one of my favorite verses. It seems that we (Christians) always have this tendency to go away from brokenness. It's tough to stay broken spiritually before the Lord when all is good, the salary is nice, the house is comfortable, and you have a 401k. We just have these comfortable lives and is a blessing, but usually causes me to take Him for granted. My brother shared a story with me this past week that broke me down spiritually. It's so neat how God can use people close to us to do that. I'm just blown away by God's interaction in my life. I had just been thinking and telling my brother that the Lord was in the coincidences of life and that, well, they really weren't coincidences and if you want to call those little crazy things that happen, "coincidences" then...I say that He is also Lord of them. Okay, that was a run-on sentence. Forgive me. It seems that...in brokenness...it's like the ears of our heart have amplifiers on them and we can hear everything around us. Before, the Lord might have to scream for us to hear, but now, He can give a gentle whisper and we wake up. There are people in this life that live a life of brokenness and constantly are enamored with heartache. Our Lord was enamored, and we can know that He has been through anything and everything that we could ever think about going through. That's comforting. I just want to come to a place where telling people that "I love them" is fresh and sweet on my lips. It's not something that makes me feel uncomfortable or makes me feel weird. Lee Cunningham, whom I love, told me that he loved me as we left a party this weekend. That's brotherly love. People that care about each other w/o asking for anything in return. Jesus lived like that.

When I was a kid and my mom would make a cake. She would pour the batter out and then give me the bowl and mixer. Man, I am not going to lie, I would like this bowl until there was not an ounce of mix left. I would get my tongue between the mixer blades and get every last bit of it. It was sooo sweet. I am hoping that one day, I will seek the Lord and His Word with that intensity...well of course...w/o all the licking :)

Just a few details

It really amazes me that the Lord cares about the details of our lives.  I think we all know that He does, but I don't think we ever really thank Him for it or really believe that He is in the details.  I'm just now realizing that He is in every detail of our lives and we cannot surpise Him.  He was there before the world began, before we were thought of, and after we are gone, He will still be there.  He's in the coincidences and mishaps, He's everywhere.  That's good news.  I think I can rest in that. 

Just sayin

You know, as I sit here and realize that the "f" key has come off of my keyboard, I also came to the conclusion that out of an entire day, this was the worst thing that happened to me. 

Today was the first "official" meeting of CrossPoint.  It was quite cool to have so many people in church and to see the entire football team and coach Bowden in church.  There was not enough room to sit, it was really cool.  We also had the start of our small groups which we are calling "connecting point" groups.  It was pretty neat to have them over to my house and get to know some of them.  I love having random people coming together, there is something that is electric in that.  The semi-awkwardness of it does it for me.  It looks like we have a very unique and awesome group of people and I'm excited to get to know them. 

So I just finished Rob Bell's newest book, "Velvet Elvis."  It was a really interesting read.  I would not consider it a very deep book but he does go through a lot of Jewish customs that will better help you to understand Jesus and the scriptures.  In one chapter of the book, he discussed coming to people and treating them with an agenda.  Do we group people in a "saved" and "not saved" category?  Do we love them based on what category they fit in?  He brings up the idea of service also.  How can we show people Christ?  By serving them, the gospel is good news for everyone is the point he makes.  If a woman in an apartment complex becomes a Christian, then this is good news for the entire apartment complex.  This woman should now be even more caring, giving, kind, and serve the people around her.  It makes sense.  I've been trying to get to know my neighbors.  I desire to serve them and want them to know Christ.  We have to give an account one day, I've been convicted lately that I haven't used everything I've been given.  Thank God that Jesus and the disciples didn't stay in the upper room, I'm glad they didn't post a sign, and invite people to come hear them.  I am glad they went out and found the lost people, reached them where they worked, and shared life with them.  I'm trying to really see Christianity in its purest form, the way Jesus showed it to us.  It's tough to read the book of Acts and not label them "super Christians."  They weren't super at all, that was "normal" Christianity.  Whew, I've got a long way to go. 

In other news, I have officially set-up a mini-recording studio in my closet.  Yes, I said, my closet.  I realized that it was the best place to set-up with the least amount of distractions.  When I just recorded in my room, I noticed that the mic would actually pick up the dog scratching herself, or well, maybe that was me, but anyway, I moved to the closet.  My first major personal project is to record the New Testament and eventually get it out on CD for you, my fine friends.  If you would like to record a few chapters for me, please email me and let me know.  It's been a great way to read through the scriptures and I hope it all works out! 

That was Neat

This was a very relaxing weekend. I haven't really felt good for the past month and have something wrong with my head. I went to the emergency room with a bad headache one night and I really thought I was going to die. I have been putting it off, but I think I am finally going to go get a brain scan. I just hate to pay all that money and then say that nothing is wrong with me. Oh well, I guess I'll finally go. Anywho. So this weekend I just hung around the house. I played on the computer, caught up on my geeking and talked to a friend of mine, Brent Sears. Brent is a really awesome guy. He's one of those people that you can meet and instantly know that he knows the Lord. He quit his job to follow the Lord and it turns out...a few months after he did that, he found out that they are closing his office. You telling me that God doesn't know our future? Wow. He has helped me a lot in getting started in doing voice-overs. He let me borrow a mic of his for a few weeks to get up and going. I think I am going to buy one just like it. So on Saturday, Cheatham and I drove around and looked at some investment properties. It's kinda fun, I feel like there should be a tv crew rolling around with us. Okay, maybe not. Saturday night, I just came home and watched a Josh Turner and Randy Travis special. So good. If you can check it out, do so, on CMT.

I woke up this morning and went to CrossPoint. It's just been amazing to see this church grow and be apart of it. We were probably about 60% of the building, it was great. Next week, the football team is going to visit and it should be crazy. I'm excited. I left church, came home, took a short lil nap, and then headed out to Greenville to meet my little girlfriend at Macaroni Grill. MMMM. I had a gift card that we have now used 2 times. Penne Rustica...mmm. We devoured it and then enjoyed a slice of cheesecake :) I drove my motorcycle over there so afterwards, we rode around some neighborhoods in Greenville and came back. I drove back to Clemson for a meeting at church. Now, for my whole life, I've never been a member of a church. I've felt the Lord dealing with me in this for a long time but just haven't found a church that I feel "apart" of. People said that I should just join a church and then it would feel like home to me. I just disagreed. I don't want to sit down at a meal, not like it, and then someone tell me, keep eating it, you will eventually like it. I have always felt like when the Lord wanted me somewhere, He would make it very clear. I have known for a few months that I wanted to join CrossPoint, but I kept missing the join meetings. Today was the day I was going to join. Well on the way there, my motorcycle breaks down just outside of Clemson. This is about right. I didn't get upset and quietly said in my heart that this was not from God and was from Satan :) I really believe that Satan wanted to keep me away from joining a church. You might think that is a little much, but I believe it 100%. I got the bike cranked enough to get me a mile and then cut off. I did this for about 4 miles and eventually had to push a little ways. I got home about 30 minutes late and enough time to jump in my Jeep and drive to the meeting. It was an informational night and just a chance for people to hear about the vision of the church etc. I fit right in. All of the things I have wanted from a church are there, teaching, people, style, evangelism. AND all the gifts that I have, I feel like can be used there! I really had to fight tears when they played some music. It just felt natural to sign my name on a card and commit my time and life to a place. I really look forward to what the Lord is going to do in and around the people there. It's exciting that He can use broken pots and pans to prepare a meal could last for eternity.

Chris Moody tells of the Proposal to the Lod

This is hilarious if you know Moody. He was self-proclaimed "Bachelor to the Rapture".

So Chris finally made the jump and got engaged. I tell you, this guy is completely out of his league as Lottie is a hottie as she is formally known as. I do salute you Chris for becoming "that guy" and making everyone wonder how you got such a hottie and beautiful woman. The only way is that the Lord has "done gone and blessed you." You have freely relinquished the pimp juice and invested wisely :)

I wish you the best :)

The little things

What has always amazed me is ...well...how does God think?  What influences His decisions to do certain things?  Why does He allow some to be healed of disease and others to die?  Ultimately, He is sovereign and in control of all things.  The Bible says that everything on earth is under Jesus' feet.  We trust that He know all things and all futures.  You can bog your brain down to think about it.  A co-worker of mine had a tragedy in her family.  Her son was in a jet skiing accident and had extensive brain damage.  His brain stem was badly damaged which usually means there is no hope.  People have been known to take people off life support once this happens from what I'm told.  The family has been around this boy and just waited to see what would happen, even though doctors have not been very positive in his outlook for life.  He's been like this for almost two months, no response.  I heard today that he is now responding and has miraculously come around and started to write on a dry-erase board.  He said he was hungry and wanted spaghetti.  He also named friends that he wanted to visit him.  It looks like he is a miracle in the working.  Huge praise.  I pray that if God does completely heal him that he will have a clear understanding of grace and love the Lord.  That's huge news. 

In other news, I really love how the Lord deals with me sometimes.  I've been out of myself for a while.  I'm sure you have all been there.  It's that part of faith that you just don't have a desire to do the things that you used to naturally do, well with God's help.  I haven't really done anything the past few months.  I read every now and then and still grow to an extent, but my life has not been the abundant life that I know is there.  The Lord has been slowly getting me back and it's neat when He does the little things that let me know that He still knows I'm there and cares.  I was telling a story about Tom Conlon tonight, a musician that I absolutely love and have for years.  I was talking about this one song he has, "Water", I've probably talked about it on here before.  It's one of the best written songs I have ever heard.  I was sharing a story about it with my roommies.  How God used that song many years ago as I was preparing to give a message one Sunday.  I had heard the song for years w/o fully understanding the meaning.  It was about 10 o'clock and I'm listening to it as I'm writing down some thoughts.  It finally hit me.  I had Tom's cell phone number so I called him.  "Hey Tom, this is justin tanner...blah blah, I finally understood and got your song."  I was just in tears sitting at my computer listening.  It just amazed me that I could listen to it all those years and never get it.  It was so refreshing to see what he was talking about.  The song is about getting outside of your comfort zone and sharing Christ with people.  He describes us as water that is just sitting, sitting, sitting so long that it has become stagnant.  I got this picture of water in an alley that has been sitting there for months.  It's smelly, green, things growing out of it, and it's just disgusting.  I realized that even though I have this gift of evangelism, I don't use it.  I'm rotten, literally.  Selfish, complacent, stagnant water.  He talks about picking a guy up on the side of the road, now that guy knows the Lord and has a family of Christians because you didn't have fear of picking someone up. 

So back to the story, I walk in my room after sharing this story about "water" and guess what's just started playing on my computer.  Yeah, "Water."  I just have to laugh and get a little teared up and say that God is still around, He hasn't gone anywhere.  He is still there and wants me to realize that He still cares about me and wants me to be a good steward of my life.  He's in everything, even the little things.

Water Lyrics

It's a silent night, I'm sleeping in my bed
A studio apartment with a dream in my head
But nothing much changes unless I change it
But one day when the time is right, i just might rearrange it


We are like water, we fit the container, we look for an outlet
we know we can't just remain there
It's all about flowing out into dry land
Open mouth, dirty hands.

I heard about you, making friends with a stranger
Now he's got a new family because you had no fear of a danger
But i had my days of waitin on a roadside,
for a friend like you, who wasn't afaid to give me a ride


We are like water, we fit the container, we look for an outlet
we know we can't just remain there
It's all about flowing out into dry land
Open mouth, dirty hands.

I found that I can be, a friend and a lover
I got sweet water to fill your cup
I got this well of life, the source is high above me
I just let it out, i just let it out
it keeps filling up, filling up, filling up with neverending love
Feeling up...

Children of the light, sons and daughters
sitting in buildings, standing water
maybe someday soon, our hearts will open
maybe one of these silent nights will rush like a river flowing

We are like water, we fit the container, we look for an outlet
we know we can't just remain there
It's all about flowing out into dry land
We are like water, we fit the container, we look for an outlet
we know we can't just remain there
It's all about flowing out into dry land
It's all about flowing out into dry land
Open mouth, dirty, dirty, dirty hands.
Making soil out of sand...

Haven't seen for a while

There was a song I used to listen to all the time called "Haven't seen for a while"...what a great song. Pat Mcgee band sang it. The greatest part was when he talked about "it's 5:15"...because I know what that time of day is like...i'm coming home from work, done for the day, time to relax. I like music.

So I've been gone from the blog for a while and for the few people who still check this thing, well I'm starting back. So a lot, well some, has happened since I last had something to say. My grandmother passed away a few weeks ago. I woke up on a Saturday morning and went into the garage to clean up a bit and just started thinking about her really randomly. An hour later, my mom called and told me that she had passed away that morning. It's really crazy when things like that happen, it gives me just enough scent to know that God is still around and still speaks to us clearly.

She was a beautiful woman. She was like the spiritual rock of our family. She was the type of person that could cook really well and then when she would pray, you would almost cry. You could feel the Lord in her voice and the things she would say. She had an intimate relationship with the Lord and read the Word all the time. She had so many books that she would read. I didn't appreciate my grandma until I got older. Growing up, the prayers were just something you did before you eat. I used to think they were kinda long and I was really ready to just dig into the little biscuits she made that must have been like manna in the Bible. They were so good. As I got older and the Lord got my heart, her prayers started to make sense to me. I realized that she really knew the Lord and everyone that knew her was positive that she had a relationship with him. She didn't grow up with a lot of money so she liked to always make sure people had enough food and always made sure she cooked enough so we could give food to people around her town who didn't have much. She thought about everyone and if she knew you were coming to her house anytime around Christmas, you better believe she was going to give you a present. It might have been a couple of tshirts or a couple pair of socks, but you got something and appreciated it.

As her health started to go down hill, she always could catch me just as I would leave visiting her and ask about our family. She wouldn't ask how much money each one of us had, how big our house was, or anything like that. She was always concerned about each person in our family and their relationship with the Lord. She prayed constantly for the people who didn't know Him. My grandmother and I shared this same passion for our family, our whole family to know Him, really KNOW HIM. I could never leave her bedside without crying so hard. She would pray and it got to me. I learned a lot from her and I wasn't around her all the time. She lived an hour away growing up and when i went to college, I was hours away from her. The only time I would see her was if I went home and would stop by in the nursing home.

She asked me years ago to speak at her funeral. Along with two of her pastors whom she adored. It was such a blessing to be able to do that. I got to speak at the graveside and what an honor I thought that was. I got to summarize a life that was well lived. I talked about how she was a servant and cared for people and their needs. She didn't have much, but made much of not much. I told a story about how her dinner table was set-up. Everyone had a chair except her, she had a stool. I didn't figure out the reason for the stool until I was a lot older. She wanted to sit on that stool so she could get up really quick if anyone needed anything. And don't you dare try and get up and get something yourself, this was a sin. She was a servant and I will miss her...our whole family will. The crazy thing about a life that is well lived is that it doesn't have to stop with her. I've learned a lot from her and hope to carry on what she left with. She wrote this letter for me to read at her funeral. Talk about convicting and loving bound in paper.

In other news, I have found a church, finally. I visited Crosspoint a few months ago and absolutely loved it within the first 5 minutes I was there. I've looked for years and haven't been directly involved with a church that I could call mine. I wanted a church that was open and fun but still taught the scriptures verse by verse. I found it and love it. We start meeting in Tillman auditorium this Sunday, fun times! I hope to do some video work and start shooting some videos around the campus and use it as an evangelistic type tool. Please pray for that if you will :)

In the last bit of news, I started doing some voice-over work. I have desired for many years to get into doing commercials, radio, etc. I finally bought some equipment to start recording. I have a few projects that have been on the back-burner for many years. Soon they will be :)

Oh yeah, I still have a girlfriend after many months, why she keeps dating me, I'm not sure :)

Until next time, have your pets ...well nevermind. :)

Funny

Your results:
You are Superman

Superman 80% Green Lantern 75% The Flash 65% Spider-Man 55% Supergirl 55% Wonder Woman 45% Iron Man 45% Robin 42% Hulk 30% Batman 30% Catwoman 25%

You are mild-mannered, good, strong and you love to help others.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Test

A Good Laugh at Christians

If we can't laugh at ourselves, who can we laugh at :)

Changing a lightbulb the Christian way:

Charismatic: Only one. Hands already in the air.

Pentecostals: Ten. One to change the bulb and nine to pray against the spirit of darkness.

Presbyterians: None. Lights will go off and on at predestined times.

Roman Catholic: None. Candles only.

Baptists: At least 15. One to change the light bulb and three committees to approve the change and decide who brings the potato salad.

Episcopalians: Three. One to call the electrician, one to mix the drinks and one to talk about how much better the old bulb was.

Unitarians: We choose not to make a statement either in favor of or against the need for a light bulb. However, if in your own journey you have found that light bulbs work for you, that is fine. You are invited to write a poem or compose a modern dance about your light bulb for the next Sunday service, in which we will explore a number of light bulb traditions including incandescent, fluorescent, three-way, long-life and tinted, all of which are equally valid paths to luminescence.

Methodists: Undetermined. Whether your light bulb is bright, dull, or completely out, you are loved. You can be a light bulb, turnip bulb or tulip bulb. A church-wide lighting service is planned for Sunday. Bring a bulb of your choice and a covered dish.

Nazarene: Six. One woman to replace the bulb while five men review the church lighting policy.

Lutherans: None. Lutherans don't believe in change.

Amish: What's a light bulb?

I've seen many thing

You know...there have been many interesting things that circulate around the net...but this is one of the strangest I do believe.

Human Beatbox

Famous!

Updated Some Fun Links :)

Click here for Miss Wyatt

Click here for Herbert

Click here for flight of Moth Butterfly(It's LIVE)

Freedom Weekend Aloft 2006

Like almost every year, a group of us take off to Freedom Weekend Aloft in Anderson. It's a time of Hotair Balloons and multiple mullets amongst the crowd. My bro Greg, lil sis Jess, and I went and it was fun :) Jewel, Train, and well...we saw a few lesbians too. Interesting mix for Anderson :) 

Greg, Jess, and me :)