Christmas in Georgia

Our Christmas travels began this past weekend. We made the trip to Griffin, GA to see my dad's side of the family. I had some free time so I made this little family tree instead of explaining who's who. The party takes place at my Aunt and Uncle's house. Everyone on the tree except Matt was able to make the trip. We always have a great time with family. Uncle Bob always has some project going on around the house so every visit there is something new to play with. This year was the new playground in the back yard for his grandkids. Fortunately he built it to withstand adult weight so I could play too. The next addition to the playground is a zip line.

Doug

Cori & Kate

Alexa

Rob & Alana

LONG FAMILY TREE

(Names in green are married into family)

                                                              W.C. - Ann (Both Deceased)

                                                                /                               \

                                                   Linda-Bob                            Joe-Delana

                                                  /           \                                    /         \

                                  Alana-Rob         Kris-Jacob         Rebecca-Brett     Matt

                                    /        \            /        /     \

                              Kaitlin   Doug   Corrine Alexa James(due any day)

My 1st cousins once removed are all under the age of 4. So when they are awake there is always plenty of activity. Each visit it takes them a little while to get use to me again. Fortunately it is taking less and less time. So by the end of breakfast we were friends again. Kaitlin and Cori are who Rebecca and I spent most of our time with since they can communicate back and don't wear diapers. We played with blocks, colored, built trains, and watched Toy Story 2. The action was non-stop most of the day. In our many conversations throughout the day the thing that continued to stand out was their imaginations. Everything about them, their toys, appetites, attention span, and bodies are all so small. The only thing not small aside from their loudness, is their imaginations. The simple games with the toys that didn't amount to much in my view, were intricate designs with endless possibilities. Listening to what was going through their heads was the most fascinating thing of the weekend. I know I often think of children having simple minds, but in a way it's not that simple. Jesus often referred to having 'faith like a child,' 'becoming like little children,' or 'the Kingdom belongs to children.' Does he want me to have a more simple mind? Or is he wanting me to not limit my view of him? We were made in God's image, including our minds. We come into this world closest to complete innocence that we'll ever be and the sin nature begins to immediately take over, and without the grace of God, our sinfulness would take us further and further from him. I'm thinking our mind does the same thing. We come into this world with no problem of comprehending God. Why are children so receptive of the gospel? Some would say they don't know any better and are just gullible. But after spending time with children and attesting to what's in the bible, I would say it's just the opposite. As children our minds are the least removed from its creator. So their acceptance of God is not ignorant faith, but a natural fitting piece to the puzzle in our minds. Why are the Narnia and Lord of the Rings movies so intriguing, even to adults? Perhaps they speak back to our childhood norm. As we grow without Christ, we try to fill that piece with everything else and forget how we were originally designed. So as we grow and become more 'learned' and less 'imaginative,' I think we are devolving from how our minds were originally formed.

Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." - Matt. 19:14

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" He called a little child and had him stand among them. And he said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. - Matt. 18:1-5

At that time Jesus said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. - Matt. 11:25

"Do you hear what these children are saying?" they asked him. "Yes," replied Jesus, "have you never read, " 'From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise'?" - Matt. 21:16

Thessalonians' Lifestyle

I have been reading through the 5 New Testament books that start with 'T'. I read this a while back, but it has stuck with me so I thought I get it down in the blogosphere.

"We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Thessalonians 1:3

Its a simple verse meant to encourage the young Thessalonians in their Christian walk and includes the often mentioned triad of faith, hope, and love (1 Cor. 13:13, Col. 1:5, 1 Thess. 5:8). I have never heard anyone argue the merit of possessing these three characteristics. Everyone wants to possess these, the question is how to cultivate a life that personifies them. What stood out to me were the words that brought out these pillars of the Christian life and I think they provide some insight. As usual it goes against the typical line of thinking.

• "Your work produced by faith" - I could delve into many roads on faith and works, but I wanted to stick to what first came to my mind that morning. I was about to go to my job, so when I read 'work' that is what I associated it with. Why do we work? Most would say to make money, some to survive, others to acquire stuff. I meet very few people who actually enjoy their work. So we work out of fear of not surviving or keeping up with status quo of society. We work for security. If faith is "being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see," I know I often try to buffer that notion of having faith with work. I want to think God will take care of me, but I also want to have a back up plan, just in case. Its easy to have faith if your life situation is considered "well-off." When times are down though, it is easy to put faith in your work rather than God. My take home message was a reminder that each day I go to work is not to assure my own well-being aside from God, but I work knowing my needs will be taken care of.

• "Labor prompted by love" - Labor and love are rarely used in the same sentence. The idea of labor is usually looked down upon by our society. Everyone wants a job where they don't have to do anything and get paid for it. The idea of laboring for love and not just for money is so far removed from my usual line of thinking. Laboring, work, etc. take up so much of our time, it should be such a good venue for representing Christ. What we love will set us apart from the world, so it is best to express that love even when we are laboring. I'll give a quick shout out to my first musical interest, dc talk, who put it very nicely in '90s hip hop lingo in their song "Luv is a Verb" Take home message, "Whatever you do, do it with all your heart as if working for the Lord and not for men." - Colossians 3:23

• "Your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ" - It is easy to get frustrated at work, slack off, or quit. A coworker tells me every time I ask how he is doing, says "just waiting on 5 o'clock." How often have I longed for 5 o'clock, the weekend, or even retirement? What a sad thought. Hope has come to mean a longing for something to happen you don't think will happen. In the Bible it is just the opposite, implying a "joyous certainty", confidence that what is going to happen in the future is for your good. If we place our hope on ourselves, then it is no surprise we are all working for the weekend, because we will never find satisfaction in our own desires. Its so easy to live life as a destination, with each stop a let down in our search for temporary pleasure. If our hope is in Jesus, the journey and the destination, how can we be let down? He has the ultimate gift, which we can never acquire on our own and will give an eternal meaning to each day. Take home message "This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it." (Psalms 118:24). 

Do what you love. 

Love what you do.

True Life

For almost a year now a group of us have been anticipating an episode of MTV's True Life. This is not a throwback to my misguided TRL days. The real reason being, Rebecca's former roommate, Laura Beth and her now husband, Brett, were documented for the episode, "I'm a Newlywed." With an episode list that features entertainment such as "I'm Bisexual, I'm Addicted to Porn, I'm an Alcoholic, I work in the Sex Industry," what 'unusual' characteristic could MTV be interested in? Like many Christians, Brett and LB held to their convictions of not having sex until they were married. For MTV this is freakish enough, so as icing on the cake for the network, Brett and LB had never kissed each other, nor anyone else and wouldn't until they got to the altar. These facts allowed them the opportunity to be documented and share their story. Being MTV, Brett and LB had reservations about agreeing to the show for fear of an unfair portrayal. They obviously decided to do the show and do their best to accurately share their stories and the spiritual reasons behind their convictions, and let God handle how it is portrayed and received. Just like the stock market, there is always risk associated with reward. With a national audience a huge risk could have huge rewards for the kingdom. (Rewards are not always experienced in this life)

The big premiere was last night. David, Emily, Matthew, Clay, Kelsey, Rebecca, and I went up to the BSU to watch the show since we don't have cable. I was hoping to make the cut, but they showed very little footage from the wedding so I never got my face on national TV. Rebecca being the Maid of Honor made several clips and had a few lines. We were all pretty nervous about how they would be portrayed since they're Christians and from the South.The hour long show also documented another couple who were in a long distance relationship and just got married.There were parts that were very awkward. Since the show was about them going from 'nothing' to 'all the way,' clips were centered around conversations about sex. Having known these people for so long it was odd to see them talk about their sex life on national TV. I thought the show was good overall and cast them in a positive light. I could see some people on 'our side' not liking it so I sent Brett Williams an email this morning to give him positive feedback. I knew he wouldn't expect one from me, so it wouldn't be taken as lip service. Here is an excerpt:

Sure, parts of it were awkward, but that's the nature of MTV. I know they only took a fraction of a percent of the total film they shot and edited it to their liking. Even so, I took away two things from watching it last night.

1. I didn't feel like they tried to portray you in a inaccurate light. It felt like the same Brett and Laura Beth I was used to being around at Academy Village.
2. The crowd who usually watches MTV will consider the awkwardness mild compared to what's normally on that channel. Either they will be intrigued or write you off. If they are intrigued and seek out a greater knowledge of our Christian convictions, then mission accomplished. If not, then they are right where they started and you did them no harm.

You were able to tell your story as best as possible under the circumstances in a way that didn't compromise or misrepresent any of your beliefs to a crowd that would not have heard so otherwise. If there are those who say it was "too much husband/wife information" or "not enough about Christianity;" then the show was probably not intended to reach them and they maybe needed to change the lenses through which they viewed.

In a show that seeks to display the unique in society it is a bittersweet feeling that abstinence is such a foreign concept to so many. It is sad that so few people practice this. However, because of this reason Brett and LB were given a platform that would not have been available otherwise.

A few posts ago I wrote about marriage. The fact Rebecca and I saved ourselves for marriage has made it all the better. Abstinence prevents comparison, children out of wedlock, and STDs. It forces you to get to know the person emotionally rather than just seek out physical satisfaction.You have your whole marriage to enjoy that aspect and the good things in life are always worth waiting for.

The Beginning

I hadn't given much thought to a blog until recently and decided I wanted to give it a try for several reasons.

1. I have always enjoyed journaling but have gotten lax with it as of late, so maybe this will inspire me to do better.
2. I often have thoughts, experiences, rants, and pictures I want to share and now they can be accessed for all whom are interested in one place.
   
3. My wife has one and I can't let her get too much cooler than me.

My title comes from a Professor I had in college, who before every test said "Brevity will be rewarded." He was mainly lazy and didn't want to have to grade a lot. However, the phrase stuck with me and reminds me its not how much you say, but what you say. So, I decided on the title because of two reasons. One, I hope it describes me. I know I'm on the quieter side so I hope the words I do say "express much in few words." Two, I want it to remind me of the duration of life on this Earth. As a Christian believer, I fully believe this life on Earth is only the beginning, but we are here for a reason and need to make the most of that time. I have found that a little time spent reflecting on life leads to a greater enjoyment of those moments and a greater utilization of time in the future.

Happy Blogging.