Relaxing in God's grace

Perhaps it sounds cliche. Maybe the reason for that is we as churchgoers have developed our own catchy phrases and lingo. But relaxing in God's grace is the best (and only) thing we can do.

I've had a stressful week prior to now. The seminary has a different online system from Blackboard, so I'm trying to figure that out, and one of my professors doesn't have everything up yet, so that was confusing me when I was trying to figure out what to study, and I had to drop my Hermeneutics class because it looked like it would literally be too much work. At least for an online class with which I have to hold myself accountable. Top that off with the fact that I sincerely began doubting if this is what I want to do with my life (that is, study my ass off to become somewhat of a Bible scholar). It was a scary feeling that hit me the other day... it pushed me emotionally away from God so that I didn't even want to seek Him for a good 3 days or so. I just felt completely overwhelmed with this feeling that I'm overstepping my abilities and desires to learn about God. I mean, we all say we love God, but who wants to write 5 papers per semester, per class, on random ancient topics? The scary realization was that I'm simply not that bright.

The upside (wow... I was just rereading that and that is depressing!) is that I woke up today feeling refreshed and happy. I got out of bed with the light coming through my windows with the forest twenty feet from my room, and it's just a really cool view. Lots of green. Keeps me mellowed out. And I got up at 9:40 AM, which is probably why I didn't feel like a sloth that had been beaten with a baseball bat, like I usually do. Sleeping too long sucks.

I've got to run up to Wake again today to return some books... I'm just in a difficult spot. More than anything I wanted to make it into ECU's Marriage and Family Therapy program. Who wants to be a 23 year old with a B.A. in something he can't use? My self-esteem is suffering right now because I lacked the assertiveness in college to call people and get an internship, which would have helped me get into grad school and possibly find a job around here, even a menial one. I'm just trying to relax and see that God loves me anyway and that I am growing up; it's just a slow, painful process... the prepubescent growing pains haven't stopped, they just changed form and now they're psychological, not physical.

New Hillsong Church in NYC

Hey you guys! I wanted to blog about something really interesting happening. Apparently, Hillsong has plans to plant a church in NYC!

I want to share some thoughts and reflection on this that have come to me since I found out about this a month ago. 

At first, I was pumped... because this is a really big deal. But I began to ask myself why I was excited about it... and it dawned on me that I have been caught up in the hype of a huge, successful church organization and forgotten about all the small, local churches in NYC who have been making the message of Christ their mission during the last century. 

I want to stop and just thank the bigger churches in NYC like Redeemer, and the smaller churches in NYC like Bethel Gospel Assembly. Thanks for bleeding and sacrificing and suffering well for the cause of Christ. You impressed me with your love for Christ and how real you are about loving people well.

Is anything wrong with Hillsong? Not at all. They are one of the most Spirit-driven churches around, it seems. My point is that it's easy to flock to the churches with the best bands, the biggest bucks, etc (because it's exciting!)... and to forget about the ones that are struggling to pay their operating costs. These local churches in NYC deserve a huge honor for the work they've done. 

So my thoughts changed from admiring Hillsong to feeling almost critical of them for doing what seemed to be "throwing fists of money" into NYC to create another successful American church. But don't get upset... I changed my mind.

When I saw this video, I realized that Hillsong's leadership and people have a vision that is Gospel-centered... not success-centered, not entertainment-driven. And I felt a new respect for them. So in essence, I went from being a fan (but only for the hype), to being a critic (because I'm critical of money-stuffed megachurches), to being a fan again (because I see they have the right heart about this venture. 

Here's the VIDEO I just saw. God bless you guys. Thanks for reading. 

Tips for new Twitter users

Tips for Tweeting 

1) Don't tweet everything. (Like when you use the bathroom)

2) Your internal monologue is where you find your tweet material. 

3) Don't tweet if you couldn't say it in front of your girlfriend.

4) Don't tweet about work. 

5) Tweet like you get paid to do it. 

6) Tweet about your favorite places to eat, go, etc. (Peeps like to know) 

7) Follow your local news on Twitter. 

8) Tweet the word "sexy" at your own risk... crazy people will start following you. 

9) Block fake twitter accounts posing as temptuous women... they're probably fake accounts. 

10) Tweet your political views only rarely... and add humor to prove your point. Keep Twitter a lighthearted place. 

11) When you link Twitter to Facebook, more people read your tweets than you think. (Be careful what you tweet)

12) Don't be afraid to unplug from it all once a week or so. (It's easy to become obsessed with what others think... and just tweet all the time to constantly get attention)

Hope this helps!