you know. . .perhaps i didn't look too much into which site to blog and such on. . .so i think i'ma gonna move over to xanga. . .more options. yeah. i moved
Edit 2/4/04: Why didn't anyone tell me the link sucked??

Hola. Well, not a whole lot went down today. Played some more Animal Crossing (go figure) and went to go see "Paycheck" with Paul Giamatti (I like him the most, therefore he gets top billing), Ben Affleck, and Uma Thurman. It was a decent movie. Not bad, not great. The concept behind everything was pretty cool, but they could've done so much more with it. Oh well. I'm going to go see "Big Fish" tomorrow. I'm a bit more excited for that. "Tim Burton's masterpiece." "Finally, a script that matches Burton's visualizations." So, yeah. Looking forward to it. Passed up the chance to see Bubba Ho-tep. It was playing at the Fargo theater. It's got a really freaking messed up storyline. Here goes: the main character is Elvis. It turns out that an Elvis impersonator was taking his place and that impersonator died, so the real Elvis never got a chance to go back to his life. So, anyways, Elvis winds up at a old folk's home with a black guy who thinks that he's John F. Kennedy. Now, these two guys get together to stop a mummy that's been going around killing people in their nursing home. And that's it. Yeah. . .weirdest move plot. Ever. Sadly, I think that's about all I have tonight. So, y'all keep it real. (I can't believe I just said, "y'all").

adios y Dios le bendice
verse of the day: Romans 8:1
song of the day: "Silence" by Blindside (wow, another Blindside song) "They look up to the stars and wonder where You might be. They look up without realizing they're standing in the palm of Your hand. I can't explain or understand. . .I just love You."

Crikey, my feet be cold. I guess that's what I get for staying home while the rest of the family is out working. You see, the heating here's on the whole schedule where it turns off during the day, then starts warming up around 3-4 o'clock. That's why I'm glad we have lots of blankets here:) Well, even though that little blurb may make you think I don't have anything pertinent to write today, I actually do. Here goes. I am not a bad person. You're either thinking "duh" or "what is this guy talking about?" As such, I think I'm going to explain that a bit more. You know, one of the greatest lies in the church right now is that we have no way to be what God wants us to be; we'll never get there. Try and try as though we may, our flesh holds us down and we'll struggle against ourselves and our sin until the day we die and our judged by the Almighty and set free to live a perfect life in Heaven. While this is true to some degree, it's quite misleading. There's one thing that thought does not take into account. When we become a Christian, a true Christian, we get a new heart. God gives us a new heart. Don't believe me? Check out Ezekiel 36:26. You might be thinking "Woo-hoo, a new heart. What's the big deal?" Here's the big deal: the heart is the well-spring of life. It's where our true thoughts and emotions come from. It's where man's nature is contained. That's what, as it says in Romans 7:15-17, if we don't want to sin, (and we don't, remember we have a new heart; a heart from God) then it is the sin that dwells within us that causes us to sin. HALLELUJAH!! If we sin and do not want to, we are not the ones who are actually sinning; it is the sin that dwells within the flesh that we are bonded to during life. That, my friends, is cause for celebration. We are good people. We are God's people. Amen and amen. Well, I think that that's about all I have for now. So tune in tomorrow, same bat-time same bat-channel.

verse(s) of the day: Romans 7:15-17 (seriously, check 'em out)
song of the day: "Dear Slim" by KJ-52 -- "one God, one Love, one Way"

Yawn. Well, it was another uneventful day. . .just the kind I like. I played Animal Crossing for who knows how many hours, watched the new sbemail again (the best one ever, in my opinion. "Well, I suppose there could be a 'goodminton'."). That's been my day. It may seem like a waste, and it probably is, but I like these days. I think it's mainly because I don't really let very many people really close to me, and, as such, I don't really do things with a whole lot of people. Maybe I just do it so I don't get hurt. Who knows? Either way, God made me this way, and who am I to question if it's bad or good? I was reading one of my friend's blogs just yesterday and on it said something to the effect that the idea of us lacking in any one area is completely absurd. God hand-picked exactly how much of one attribute we would get long eons before our existence on this earth came into being. So who are we to say that we lack something when God gave us exactly what we needed before we existed? Whoa. That a bit much for my brain there. It's still on vacation:) It doesn't have to start working until the 13th. On a completely different note, See Spot Rock 2 is going to be friggin' awesome. The lineup you ask? Skillet, Pillar, 12 Stones, Big Dismal and Grits. Heck yeah!! I am so there! Now I just have to wait until they release some dates. Either way, this is going to be an awesome awesome tour. Hopefully Minneapolis isn't the last day of the tour like it was last year. The bands were getting kind of worn out and sick by the end. Other things I'm excited about: "The Passion of (the?) Christ" it's going to be one the best movies ever, and Blindside's new cd "About a Burning Fire" set for release February 24th, a day before "The Passion of Christ" released. How about that for a good couple of days? Well, I'm going to get back to some good ol' slacking:)

adios and may the Father show you the way in this world of darkness

song of the day: "A Shame" by Pillar -- "It's a shame to be ashamed. . .to be ashamed of the One that we should glorify!"

Nine days without shaving. I'm getting kind of hairy:) I picked up Animal Crossing for my gamecube this weekend. There's only one word to describe that game: addictive. I'm living in the town of Sbadia (Strongbadia wouldn't fit; my first choice, Murfreesboro, wouldn't fit either). It's a great game. Speaking of great, this book I'm reading right now, "Waking the Dead" by John Eldredge, is a great book too. Although, I feel that it wasn't really meant for me. I feel like somebody else I know needs that book so much more than I do. I'll have to give it to them the next time I see them. . .whenever that is. Well, today's another day and another way to see how much I truly need You, Lord. After those conferences, it's so hard to maintain the momentum. . .to, as Pastor Mark says, "come down from that mountain of an experience and apply it in your every day life." We all too often become distracted by all the things of this world and inadvertently turn our backs on the One who matters most. As someone said at TCX, we lose sight of God through "active rebellion or passive indifference." I would have a nice analogy here if my brain were working right now. Yeah, I don't really have much to write today. Maybe another time. Well, I'm either going to go have a quiet time or play some more Animal Crossing.

a Dios

song of the day: "Pitiful" by Blindside (I must like them or something) "I admit that I was only waiting for the right time. . .right time for You to look away, though You never did I pretended for a while so I could walk where I don't belong. Pitiful! So pitiful!!"

Ahhh, carbs. . .it has been a carb day. Mom made buns for me last night. This morning, she made more buns and some caramel rolls for breakfast, then I had a twice-baked potato for lunch, and, for supper, i had a big helping of pasta along with some more buns. That's one thing my future wife will find out very easily about my taste in food. Give me carbs, protein, and orange juice and I will be a happy man. You know, as I look down at the hands that are typing this out right now, I can't help but wonder "Why am I the way that I am?" I sin and fall short of God's plan for me practically every moment of every day. Sometimes I feel like such a fake. I guess we're all guilty, but since I have to live with myself, I see all the imperfections that permeate my every day existence. Anything good that I have: knowledge, faith, love for others. . .any and all of the things that I have that are good, I cannot take credit for. Everything I have that is good in my life is a gift from God. I just have to come to terms with the fact that everything I try on my own will fail. I look back at the time in my life before I knew Jesus as my best friend, and all I can see is emptiness. An empty hope in an empty dream of the American life. As long as I live, I hope to never settle for anything less than what God has planned for me. I don't want to just lay down after years of battle with this world and say, "Okay, guys, I'm tired of fighting, tired of struggling. . .I give up." I want to fight for my Lord until I run out of the breath of life from doing His will. Jesus, wherever You would have me go is where I want to be. I know that anything I plan for myself is destined for disaster. Lord, I'm desperate for You; I get down on my knees and beg You to lift me up, to work through me. . .to be able to show others how great You truly are. Right now, I have been so unable to show You to others. Father, this is my new year's resolution: to lead at least one soul to You before 2005 rolls around. If by my life or death, I can lead one soul to You, it will be enough. My life will have meant something because it changed someone's eternity. For Heaven yet rejoices over one repentant sinner. Yeah. . .I think that's about all for me now. I'm going to go read my new book "Waking the Dead" by John Eldredge. I'm not liking the first part of the book so much. Then again, I didn't really care for the first part of "Wild at Heart" so much either, and that book is phenomenal.

so, until next time. . .adios and God bless

song of the day: "Nerve" by Blindside. . ."Tense, but still so calm. Alright, leaning on Your arm. Beautiful Spirit, talk to me. Holy Spirit, walk with me."

Wow, I never really thought I'd start up one of these things. When my. . .(not sure what she is now; I'll get to that later), Danielle, started one, I thought to myself, "Hey, that's pretty nifty." But I never thought too much about starting one myself. And now here I am. I'm doing this, not because I want to, but I need to. For those of you who are reading this and don't know me (if that ever happens), I'm living my life for Christ and only for Him. I also like to think a lot, and lately, those thoughts have been a source for attack on who I am as a person. Satan's trying to pull me down through my own unfinished thoughts. I'm realizing now that thinking is one of the main things that God made my brain to need. This past week, though, I've been forced to think much more than I've ever wanted to. You see, this week, Danielle, my girlfriend for almost two years, told me that we needed a break. Now, for someone who really doesn't have much going on in their life, that was a massive blow. But through prayer, thinking, and reading my Bible, I've learned more in a week than I have in the past half year. The worst thing that we can do when something bad happens to us is curse God and ask him "why?". The answer is so obvoius. Believe me, I wanted to turn around and say, "God, I hate You. Go away." I wanted someone to lay the blame on. And yet, He is the one to blame. He did it for my good. Here's the reason to the question of "why?": you need that to happen. It says in Jeremiah that God has plans for us that aren't evil, but are good and are plans to give us a future full of hope. So, what you want to happen isn't always the best thing for you. In the end, I worship God and rejoice that this happened, because I know that whatever happens, it's for the betterment of my life and His plan to accomplish great things through me. I've also come to the realization that, as Jonah33 said, "everything is trash compared to knowing who You are." Jesus is my only treasure and everything I am given, I am given to show that they mean nothing to me compared to Jesus (thank you, John Piper). Jesus is my one and only. And that He shall remain until my death and beyond into eternity. So now, all I have left to do is get down on my knees and say, "Thank you, Jesus." Thank You for my trials, my persecutions, and the attacks upon me. For when that happens, I grow all the more closer to You, the truest love I will ever have. Well, I think that's about all I have right now. That's only about half of what's been floating around in my mind this week. And, with that, I'm going to go finish my lunch.

adios and God bless everyone of you now and for all eternity.

song for the day: Disciple - "One More Time" "And I will praise and give You thanks, for You have lifted me to carry me one more time. I'll praise and give You thanks, for You have lifted me to make me see my life is in Your hands."