Life's Lessons: Lessons from Adventures

Introduction to Life's Lessons

Everyone says to do what you love. I sit around some days and think about that for hours. How can I financially support myself if I'm just hanging out with people all day long? If I lived in the wilderness for the rest of my life is there a way that I could simultaneously be spreading the Gospel that I believe in so deeply?

When I think about the times I'm happiest, it's when I'm either in community with people building relationships, or when I'm out on an adventure. Since I haven't really been able to find a career in either of those things yet, I decided today that I want to use my blog to share how those two loves/passions shape me. Maybe it's a niche that could allow me to turn into one of those professional internet bloggers with guest bloggers and cool pictures. Maybe even a speaking event here and there! I doubt it, but I like dreaming!

Recently I've been joking with this guy at work that keeps calling me "weird", always asking me how old I am trying to determine where the days of my youth got lost. I think the reason he considers me weird is because the experiences I've already had in life have shaped me in a way that most people don't see happen to them until they're in their 40's. I enjoy birdwatching. Let me ask you this... if you were to shape your life off of the lives of the wisest people on the planet, wouldn't you choose people in an older generation? My life and hobbies reflect those of the retired community... I make wise decisions! I enjoy going to sleep at 10pm. Most consider that bedtime to be too early and feel bad for their grandmother that has to leave events early to get home by then to go to bed. So, maybe I have some traits that I share with an older generation, but from now on you'll be able to read where they come from through stories of my experiences on adventures and through community!

Today's Lesson

I've been reading a blog post from one of my friends who after college decided he was going to experience homelessness for a year. It happened to me on accident for a few days when I first moved to Charleston, and it was very trying. Reading his blog shows me what it could have been like if it was real. 

You can find it here: Redefine Homelessness

I'm inspired by his blog and his experiences. It makes me want to do things that take a step out from my comfort zones. There are worlds of people apart from us that we choose to ignore. Those of you who have been reading my blogs for a while know that I tried to spend a lot of time with homeless people when I had the margin in my life to be out and about in downtown Charleston throughout the week. They often come back to mind and I'm continually hoping for a breakthrough in my career that allows me to spend that kind of time in their community again. But, I've been convicted of other people groups that I go through life ignoring. The families in Africa surrounded by civil wars, separated from every member of their family. The one-child policy in China that puts a lot of stress on a family if they can't manage to birth a son. Women who are tossed around as sex objects. Crazy stuff happens all over the world, but it won't be on Fox News tonight. It might be mentioned, but they'll likely dumb it down as if it were a minor event that affected very few people.

In America, we have access to everything we could ever want. It's crazy though... we're never satisfied by it. We always want something better. Something bigger.

I want to think about life in a way that my biggest desire is to eat a meal during the day. That my largest daydream is to have a warm place to sleep at night. That the biggest blessing in my life is that I know where my family is and that they are safe. 

In order to do that I need to fight the temptation to want the things Americans want. If I allow myself to want the iPhone 6, a drone, a Fitbit and all the hot items from this past Christmas, then I'll be so busy trying to attain the financial status necessary to buy these items that I'll forget about my young brothers and sisters in Africa. All they wanted for Christmas was to know where their mommy was. 

Blessed

There's times where I sit down and blog for other people. I know that I have certain friends and family around the world that are interested to know how I'm doing and what's going on in my life. I hope that my words and actions encourage them, and that the things that God is doing in my life point others toward Him. Other times I blog for me. It seems that my thoughts sometimes only get in order when I'm typing them out. I find the most wisdom and conviction through what the Spirit decides to work out through my own fingers. I think it took some time for me to realize that I actually blog for myself most of the time.

I asked myself if it makes sense to blog and not just journal. A journal is more private. I can share things that I might not want to share through a blog. But, then I remember that life isn't meant to be lived alone. My problems aren't meant to be dealt with alone. My fears aren't supposed to be given a foothold to destroy me. The blessings I receive aren't meant to make me feel high and mighty. I want my life to be completely transparent. I want my sin to be something that others can see, so that they can hold me accountable to it, but also to give other people comfort to know that they aren't the only ones going through something. If we think we're the only ones with a struggle we're more likely to keep it hidden inside.

It's also important to understand that sharing things too openly can be harmful. If people around us hear that we have certain attributes, then they may stop paying attention to us. For example, if the pastor of a church were continually professing a specific political background it would most likely lead some people away. I'm not saying that it's all about the numbers because of the numbers, but because of the sphere of influence. In this case, a pastor would have a larger sphere of influence if he hadn't discussed his political background. If everything else he teaches is something that would be beneficial for someone regardless of political background, then there is no reason to feel the need to be transparent about that matter.

So I want to be transparent. I heard a sermon a month or two ago that got me thinking pretty deeply about the idea of being blessed. So often I look at the house and neighborhood I live in, the student loans I have to pay, the hours of work I have to put in, and I think I'm better than that. I'm better than a house that's falling apart. I'm better than having to work 50 hours a week. I'm smart enough to have skipped school. All these prideful thoughts like to get in my head and start burning an ugly fire of discomfort.

I had to remember that I'm right where God wants me to be. All the things that burn that frustration are things that God placed in my life because this is where He wanted me to be. If I'm exactly where God wants me to be, then I'm blessed. God allowed me to be stripped out of all my comforts two years ago, and this is the way He chose to build my life back together.

So instead of those negative thoughts I need to remember: I OWN a house. I HAVE a neighborhood. I EARNED a degree that allows me to WORK at a great job. So this is where God has me. The only thing to do now is figure out what He wants me to do with it?

Did God allow me to buy a house so that I could be more comfortable? Am I surrounded by neighbors so that I can be secluded from them? Do I have a degree so that I can work a minimum wage job? Do I earn a good salary so that I can feel financially blessed?

When I was in high school I managed to set myself up so that I took calculus 1&2 my junior year. That decision allowed me to spend some time my senior year helping out by teaching my friends and younger schoolmates how to do calculus as a teacher aid. I ended up in a position where I was able to help others because of the experiences that I had.

I'm blessed with a relationship with God that allows me to look at the things I have in a positive way. What am I going to do with them?

Something Greater - The Passion for Adventure

Every Monday I roll out of bed around 5:45, 30 minutes after my first alarm goes off. I don't want to roll around in bed for a half hour of "wasted time". I just want to get to the gym, and get a good workout in before heading to the office. Leg day usually gets cut a little short due to my inability to get out of bed to the first, second and third set of bagpipes. (If you've never woken up to the sound of bagpipes, I'm sorry, but maybe that's why most of you need coffee in the morning regardless of how much sleep you get.) The day drags on and I'm falling asleep within an hour or two of lunch. 

Every day after Monday gets progressively better, until Friday when I often wake up without the bagpipes. The excitement of the weekend gets to be so great that I can't even sleep! I've been planning the weekend since Monday morning and it's finally here. I have so many chores to do around the house. So many adventures I want to go on. So many people to see and activities to enjoy. I put in a quick hour at the gym, a half day at the office, and then it starts! I rush off to the Habitat for Humanity Restore and check for any good deals quick before the adventures begin. What's the weather like? What's the tide schedule? Are there any rare birds around? What are my friends doing? What's my girlfriend doing? Is anyone playing volleyball? Soccer? Basketball?

I have two and a half days to do everything that I'm passionate about and I want to make the most of it!

I have a passion for experiencing everything that God has placed around me. That means I don't have time to be inside, where almost everything is something man-made, unless I'm experiencing an adventure through time spent with friends and family. I want to see things that make me stand and observe in awe.

I want to see people loving on people. The greatest gift God gave us was His Son because of the love that He had for us. I can't see Jesus and I can't see God's love, but I can see both love and the gift of salvation lived out through the people around me.

I want to see waves, rivers and waterfalls. How does the water keep flowing and never stop? How do waves continue to crash on the beach from before I get there until after I leave? No one is pushing them. No boats are going by. Water just continually crashes on the beach because of some force that people think they can explain, but that can't be seen. I can see God's power through the continual flow and circulation of water.

I want to see fire turn something that once existed into something that looks completely different. Some call it rearranging atoms. What does that even mean? It means God has more creativity and influence in our lives than we can even begin to fathom. He gave us power to change the genetic make-up of things around us in order to bless us with different things that could have been given in far less creative ways. (odt.co.nz)

I want to look up and see the stars scattered across the sky. They aren't lined up in a row or in any type of pattern, but placed in unique locations across many galaxies by a God who just wanted us to look up and realize that He's bigger. He's bigger than our sin. He's bigger than our sickness. He's bigger than our fears. He's bigger than finances. He's bigger than our trials and our problems. He's so much bigger that He created a universe just so that we could see that He created a universe. (theguardian.com)

I want to see artistic details in minute things. Today I saw a picture of the iris of a penguin (fineartamerica.com). Look at the details in the penguins eye! It doesn't have to be red, but God knew we'd think it looked cool! Last week I saw an octopus similar to the one below (reefs.com). God gave this one animal so many awesome traits! It had the ability to jet water out of a tube on it's head in order to push harmful things away, or in my case, to blow sand at my hand. It could quickly turn from the reddish color shown in this picture to almost white. It used it's legs to learn everything it needed to about everything I put in the water, so that it's body could remain hidden behind the small amount of protection it had under an old tree stump. If something went wrong, it could lose it's leg and grow it back without any problems! God is an artist. Giving a penguin an eye without so many details was too boring. Creating an octopus without giving it the ability to do awesome things just wasn't enough! God carefully designed every little detail of everything around us, and I want to see it all!

I want to listen to music and the sounds of nature, because God created such beautiful sounds for us to enjoy. Why did God even create sound?! I think the only answer is just so we could enjoy it.

All these things God gave us because He loves us as His children. He wants us to know our Father is powerful. Our Father can take care of whatever problems we have. Our Father doesn't only care about the big problems we encounter. He doesn't just want us to come to Him when we have cancer or we've lost a loved one. He cares about the small things, like mosquito bites. We've been spoiled by our Father for as long as time has gone on, but we often want to look other places for our joy. 

I want to continually be reminded that my Father loves me. My Father spoils me. My Father wants the best for me. My Father cares about every detail of my life. My Father has the time, the creativity and the desire to help me get to the greater plan He has for me. Just as my earthly father has loved me and deserves my love, respect and praise, so much more does my Father in Heaven who continually blesses me even when my life is apart from His will daily.

God is certainly present in man-made things, because He gave us the intelligence and the power to create things, but I personally want to see all those things in there rawest form. Men are sinful, and that sin can so easily influence the things that men do and the things that men create, regardless of the man.

God's plan for us here on earth is not to spend our time investing in things of this world, but to invest our time in Him and His desires. I want to know that everything I do is either helping me gain knowledge and experience that will be used by God later in my life, or that it's something that will help the people around me see Him clearly and in a new light. It's often hard to see how this is happening from the position I'm in right now as an engineer, but I trust that God has given me this position and put me in this place at this time for a purpose. When that purpose is fulfilled, I know that a new door will open, and at that point I will walk through in excitement, knowing that the opening of a door is like getting a promotion from God. We may not think we're ready for what's beyond that door, and we might be scared to walk through, but God knows what's ahead and He's telling us we're ready. Leave your baggage behind and walk through the door, expecting God to do something great and knowing that He's going to take care of the details!

I'm going on a kayaking adventure out to one of the barrier islands with my adventure partner tomorrow. I'm excited to see what God has in store for us!

Love you all!

City of Brotherly Love

They refer to Philly as the City of Brotherly Love.


I definitely wasn't feeling the love as I walked around the city last night. In a city that size, I'm not sure that anyone can easily feel love. There's a constant sound of people beeping their horns. People on the sidewalk quickly rush along as if the other people around them don't exist. The homeless and less fortunate line the streets in tattered close, unkept hair and signs calling out to the people listing all of their misfortunes, but people walk passed them as if they are a part of the landscape. Whatever green areas exist are filled with a large variety of people. Skaters are filming mix tapes, couples are going on "romantic" walks, families are taking a break from touring the city, and the members of the landscape are sleeping on the benches and under the trees.


How anyone can find peace in such a hectic location will never make sense to me. I said hi to a few people as we made eye contact, but they quickly looked away without responding. I really wanted to find some gelato or ice cream, so I tried to approach a few people on the street to ask them if they could direct me towards some, and everyone seemed a little caught off-guard as I approached them. In a place where everyone standing around is seen as an object instead of a person, these people almost seemed that they had adapted to being a part of the landscape and being ignored. I decided the best people to ask were the people that weren't already set on doing something, which meant the best people to ask were the homeless people standing or sitting around throughout the city.


The first man I approached couldn't think of anything, but he seemed like a good guy and tried really hard to think of something and help me out. I gave him $5 then headed in a direction he told me I could go to find some ice cream. I made it over to that area but wasn't finding anything. I saw a couple guys on the side of the road asking for money that couldn't seem to sit still or keep their eyes open. I immediately decided they must be on drugs and walked right by. It's hard to admit that maybe I was wrong and maybe these two guys just really needed help, but I try to judge as best I can so that my money is going to a profitable place.


I left those two guys and ran into another guy who really wanted to walk me to get ice cream, but we first needed to stop so he could buy some beer. I talked to him a lot about Charleston. He was really interested about the women and the beach. He told me that he had recently gotten out of jail and was just living on the streets for a while until he could figure something else out. I told him that he just needs to get to Charleston before it gets too cold! He asked me my name and I said "Kevin". He stopped walking and just stared at me...
"Nawwwww!" I said "Yeah man, I'm not playin with you." Then he pulled out his ID and showed me that his name was Kevin too! Kevin Groomes. I wish I realized how special these moments are while I'm in them and I'd make sure to get named and pictures for all these people, but it's never until later that I realize I want to be praying for someone whose name I don't know and whose face is fading from my memory. Fortunately, he hooked me up before I've become disciplined enough to remember on my own!


After he got his beer he kind of forgot why I was with him. I gave him $10 as he dropped me off with a friend of his who told me he knew where I could get some ice cream. The man was 48 years old and had been living with his sister until he had gotten in an altercation with her boyfriend a few days ago. He was fresh on the street, but knew some of the other homeless guys as if he had been out there before. He also knew quite a few other people as we walked down the street. He was on a misison to get me some ice cream and was making me feel like a star in the process.


After a little while he got me to a gelato spot. I offered to get him some but he told me he had to watch what he eats. I went in and got a cup while he waited outside. While a lot of the other guys I was seeing were drunk or seemed to be on drugs, this guy seemed to have it together. I gave him $20 and thought he'd just be done with me at that point. I offered to go out to dinner with him if he was hungry, but he thanked me and told me he was alright for the night. After that, he started trying to get me back to the hotel. I had told him where I was staying and I knew how to get back, but he didn't want to leave me stranded so I just followed him wherever he led. We zig-zagged our way back to the hotel as he continued to ask everyone on the streets where the Sheraton was at. I knew he was enjoying spending some time with me and feeling needed so I just let him do what he needed to do. A couple times I tried to tell him I could get back, but he'd just say, "I can't just leave you out here on the streets. I'm going to make sure you get back to your hotel."


We finally made it back to the hotel, shook hands and went our separate ways. I went to the comforts of my $210 hotel room, and he went to find an alley to pee in and a safe place to sleep.


I started thinking about my adventurous trip around Philly as I headed up to my room. First, I was thinking about how I left the hotel with the intent of spending less than $5 on some ice cream but returned $41 poorer. I knew it was God calling me to empty out my wallet though so I got over all of that pretty quick! Then I got to start thinking about how cool it was to step through the invisible veil that separates the busy city life from the "members of the landscape." God really showed me that relationships can be made anywhere if the effort is made. Even in a place where it seemed that no one cared about anyone other than themselves, I found a man who walked over a mile with me just because I asked a simple question.


I found adventure in a city! I didn't enjoy the city, but as soon as I was willing to step slightly out of my comfort zone, God had an adventure planned for me that took over an hour! I love meeting new people and getting the opportunity to interact with people in different walks of life. I was hoping to somehow portray how amazing it was through this blog entry, but I haven't been able to even come close to explaining how much it blessed me.


I hope your adventure is going well!


Love you all!

Energy Toward the Cause

Zeal is defined as having great energy or enthusiasm in pursuit of a cause. 

I've been hosting a weekly men's Bible study at my house. We've been reading through Romans, which led us into the 10th chapter last week. Reading this chapter led me into a lot of thought about different things, but two main things I wanted to write about are the number of "Christians" in the South and the fact that I so often hear people say "the hardest thing to pray is that God would use you in whatever way He might want."

Romans 10:1-4 (NKJV)

"Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved. For I bear them witness that they have zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness have not submitted to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes."

James 2:19 (NKJV)

"You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe - and tremble!"

The scary truth that I've thought about so many times is that there are so many lost people around me, but they don't know that they're lost. They think that by believing in God, they've somehow obtained salvation. They call themselves Christians and even attend church. Some of them are involved in their churches and talk to their friends about Jesus. James 2:19 reminds us that to believe in God is purely to believe in a truth. Believing in God is not the criteria for salvation as many want to believe. James says that even the demons believe! If our faith, our religion, lies solely in the fact that we believe in God, then we are no greater than the demons that are against Him. 

Luke 4:41 (NKJV)

"And demons also came out of many, crying out and saying, "You are the Christ, the Son of God!""

The demons proclaimed, in front of a crowd, that Jesus was the Son of God! Based on this verse, I believe it's possible that someone could devote their life to foreign missions and ministry, yet still miss the gift of salvation. James talks about the fact that it is not works that earn salvation, so there is still something more important than believing in God and proclaiming the name of Jesus that is a necessary criteria for salvation. How many people stop here? How many people around us are calling themselves Christians because they believe in God and talk about Jesus? Maybe it's us.

Let's revisit Romans 10. In the first verse, Paul mentions that it is his heart's desire to see Israel be saved, so they must not be saved yet. The second verse tells us that the Israelites have a zeal for the Lord. They're excited about God. They talk about Jesus with a smile on their face. They laugh and show joy when talking about God. They are the last person in church Sunday morning talking about all that God is, yet... Paul is telling us he wants to see them be saved. How is it that someone can have a zeal for God, but not be saved? How many people around us love the idea of God so much that it brings them joy and excitement, yet they fail to meet the criteria in verse 3?

I believe that the number of "Christians" in the South is actually a huge mission field. Verse 3 teaches us that the way to break away from having the faith of demons is to submit ourselves to the righteousness of Christ. A lot of people fail to submit to Christ, because they want to have control of their own lives. We teach churches full of "Christians" that it's a hard prayer to tell God we submit our lives to Him, when in reality, it's the only prayer that makes us different from demons. But, there's nothing to be scared of... God tells us He loves us as His own children! Consider the greatest parent on the planet, then multiply them in greatness as far as you can imagine... that's our God! There's no reason to continue searching out and seeking our own righteousness, when something far greater is available to us. God promises to bless us in so many ways, just as a earthly father would bless his children. Here is a list of verses referring to blessings composed by Rick Warren: BLESSINGS

When we submit to the righteousness of Christ, we are filled with His Spirit. After being filled with the Holy Spirit, a person should experience the fruits of the Spirit listed in Galatians 5:22-23 as love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. If these traits are not part of who we are, then we are failing to submit something to Christ. If any part of our life still looks like the works of the flesh listed in Galatians 5:19-21 as adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, or revelries, then we are still trying to obtain our own righteousness in an area of our lives. 

I typically write about adventure, which is easily seen as an escape from a cityscape into the landscape and the wilderness, but there is a great adventure in submitting to God and following Him where He leads. I never know what's around the next corner. I don't know what tomorrow brings, and even if I plan it, God's plan may be different. I'm always ready for a change of plans, because I know that my Father would never lead me into something that He hasn't already prepared and equipped me for. I don't know where I'm going, but I sure know it's going to be a wild adventure!

Love you all!

I hope you enjoy your adventure!

Boast in my Lord

The last couple months have been CRAZY! I thought everything was going to slow down a little once I bought a house, but I've just been a completely different kind of busy. From buying appliances, to meetings with utilities, planting grass, fixing things. I've been running around for a month and a half and haven't even had time to think. First things first, I need to give y'all a quick tour of the house!

The first thing I had to do was figure out where I was going to sit down. I had some furniture and a lot of small stuff, but I didn't have a couch or even a chair. I decided to invest in a nice couch that would fit a few friends. Whether people are coming over to watch a football game or enjoy a fire in the fireplace, I wanted to have enough seating for more than a couple friends to hang out. Here's the Den at the house! Unfortunately we don't have central air conditioning, so you can see the box fan at work. I'm considering the idea of knocking out that wall to put in a sliding glass door to increase airflow and access to the back porch! Right now the entrance is a side door through the laundry room behind the Den. It's not really an ideal location to easily get in and out from outside, where I'd love to spend 98% of the time I'm at home.

I obtained a couple things during my time down here including the TV above and the table below from Laura as a family she was nannying for moved out and generously gave away some of their things. I'm not the biggest fan of the railing and carpeted dining room floor, but I'm continually reminding myself that this house is more of an investment toward my future than a place for me to invest my finances.

One of the things I enjoyed the most when I first saw this house was the large kitchen. For some reason, apartments and rent-able homes never have enough kitchen space. Apparently if you don't own, then you're not expected to want kitchen space. We comfortably had 6 people making 3 completely separate dinners in this kitchen a couple weeks ago. With the help of the grill outside, we cooked it all up and barely got in each other's way! I've been utilizing the grill a lot, but the kitchen has also been great. Since moving, I've started a workout routine that has me leaving the house between 5:30-6 every morning. That has me in bed pretty early, so I have been trying to cook a week's worth of meals every weekend... all made possible by the huge kitchen!

I had intended to put this final picture on here and let everyone know that I have a sweet room up for grabs! Well... I've been praying with expectation a lot lately, and God has done more than I ever thought He'd want to do to bless me. One of the things I asked for was that God would provide me with someone to live in the final room that would be a good addition to the house. After Laura came across a Craigslist ad for a guy needing a room a few days ago, I contacted him about the room I have available. He came and checked it out and couldn't believe I was going to rent it to him for the price I asked! I told him, if he's going to help me pay my mortgage, then I'm going to help him save some money for his future. I haven't talked to him much since he stopped by, but he wants the room and he'll be moving in soon! It's such a great blessing to ask and receive! But, if all this excites you, and you want to check out what Charleston has to offer, then feel free to let me know and take Brandon's spot when he goes back to school at the end of August!

I've started some sweet projects now that things are finally getting settled down inside! I bought some plants and I'm starting a butterfly garden in the front of the house hoping to get some colorful visitors throughout the summer months. I dug up some Sago Palm pups from around town and I'm working on potting them and caring for them until I can transplant them in front of the house to add a little pizzazz. I also got a couple ferns for the woods along the edge of the house, where I've actually already had Mississippi Kites nesting! 

This is one of the fledglings that was flying around the house one day. They did really well in the air, but landing was still a trick they had to master. When I saw them I headed onto the roof hoping for some good shots, but this is the best I got. The way they landed was similar to a child falling on their butt. In order to take more care in landing, the kites would spread their wings and just fall onto the leaves around the branch they wanted to land on, then search with their feet until they found the branch! It was a pretty cool sight, and it's definitely a blessing to have such a cool part of creation reproducing in my yard.

I've also had at least 6 deer at one time in the yard, along with tree frogs, lizards and a poisonous snake nearby (I was excited to take his picture, but I'm definitely keeping my eye out for him!)

Brandon and I have set the kayak out to sea twice now from the boat launch a half mile from the house. Both times we've gone out to an uninhabited island called Caper's Island and collected driftwood. It's a pretty interesting paddle. If we launch too close to low tide, we end of battling pluff mud and oyster beds on the way out. If we don't time it right on the way back in, we encounter the same thing. Then the route takes us across the intercoastal waterway into some fairly open water as we head out the inlet between Caper's Island and Dewee's Island. Caper's is a very popular spot for camping and weekend beach activities for boaters, but it's a beautiful island and a very relaxing retreat from home. There's a ton of driftwood lining the beach, so I finally have all but two pieces that I need to build a sweet coffee table! I've realized by owning this home that things are a lot cooler when they're free!

The projects will continue, and I hope to continue being able to tell cool stories. I really want my home to be a place of peace for my friends here, and also a place for visitors to find rest. God has blessed me with so much over the last couple years, and I believe that's because He wanted me to share it with the people around me. I believe that everything God has given me, He's given me as a gift to share with the people around me in order to deepen relationships with friends, family and even strangers sometimes. My house is your house. Mi casa es tu casa. Please come visit and enjoy the history, beaches and food Charleston has to offer!

Love you guys! Thank you so much for the prayers! As children of God, He cares for us as a father cares for his children. He wants the best for us and will give us the best if we honor Him with the little things!

Life is NOT Boring!

I haven't been writing much lately, but it's definitely not because there aren't things that I want to share! I have struggled with what to use this blog for and up until this point I've used it to update friends and family around the world on what God has been doing during my time in Charleston and the transition I've gone through from coming here with nothing to now having a career and almost a permanent home. God has used me in awesome ways and provided for me in miraculous ways, but our adventure isn't even close to over! 

This will begin a new era of blogs focusing on the adventures, spiritual and physical, that God leads me on!

My parents are visiting Charleston for the week so last weekend we spent some time exploring some of the surrounding natural areas. My dad has been trying to take pictures to further develop his website (www.wildriversgalleries.com), so I took them on a short trip to Patriot's Point trail, which is a narrow stretch of woods between some sports fields and a golf course that often produces some good birding.

We got skunked! I think we saw less than 10 birds along the trail, and I was about to turn around and go back to the car when I remembered that there's a field at the end of the trail that I've seen some cool stuff in, so we continued to the field. We actually found a good number of dragonflies and butterflies along the road on the way to the field, so my dad finally got to snap a few pictures. I've also seen some green snakes along the road here, but I wasn't able to find any of those when the camera was around... fairly familiar story for wildlife photography. They can sense the Nikon, but even more the Canon!

We got to the field and the trail around the field hadn't been mowed recently. It was still fairly early, so the grass was still wet with dew, but we decided to walk through anyways. I ended up soaked up to the knees and literally had puddles of water in my shoes. Waterproof shoes are an awesome invention, until you get water on the inside because waterproofing apparently works both ways!

As we were walking I looked up and saw something walking along the trail ahead of us, so I lifted my binoculars to check it out and it ended up being a coyote. There's actually a sign at the beginning of the trail where we had parked that says to beware of coyotes because they can be found in the area and they're dangerous!

Well, as I'd grown up believing, this coyote was by no means dangerous and took a quick turn off the trail as soon as it was able to catch our scent walking up behind it. It's interesting to me that something as wild as a coyote lives in areas that are so populated by humans. We build fences and throw concrete and asphalt down as many places as we can think to put it, but some animals adapt and continue to call it home. It reminds me of the bubble we love to pretend we live in. We try to keep our mind and eyes off of those things that are clearly around us so that they don't bother us. It's not just the coyotes and spiders we choose to ignore, but we also avoid areas of town where we might encounter hurting people or might get asked for change by a homeless man on the street.

Everything starts to blend in as we choose to put our blinders on, but I want to challenge you to ask yourself what your purpose on earth is. I believe that it's not to make a name for myself or dwell in my riches, but to live out the story that God has written for me. And I think for myself, and for everyone else, God's story for us is to share His love and His Son with whoever He puts before us. I want to invest my time into those people who need hope, because I've found Hope and it's very available to anyone searching for it.

Worship through Obedience

Most people attempt to live a life without regret. It's easier to do whatever we want within the moment, then try to turn those actions into something with a positive outcome later. Lots of people my age wander into this lifestyle through alcohol or drugs, which consumed in excess clouds judgement and results in choices that wouldn't had been made otherwise. Some people find themselves battling to find financial security within an addiction to consumerism. Even relationships, if entered into without caution and intentionality, can be extremely harmful to the life we form, or more importantly, our relationship with the God we love and serve.

You can pick up any magazine, newspaper, or open any news website and see a story about someone in a position of fame or power who was living a life without eternal intention. Bill Clinton decided it was worth it to have an affair. Justin Bieber decided it was worth the DUI. A quick google search finds a list of 66 professional rappers who thought their choices were worth the risk of jail time and found themselves behind bars. Every day we have a choice of whether to just take what the day brings in whatever form it comes, or whether to live intentionally and with a purpose.

There's a word going around in the church recently called "legalism". Some would say that legalism is failing to understand the power of Christ and turning a faith into a religion, an outline of do's and don't. I think the power of Christ is actually best understood when considering those things most people would consider "legalistic". Instead of saying the word and running away from it, let's dig in a little deeper.

The modern day church seems to completely divide the Trinity into three parts. Most denominations focus on one member of the Trinity and fail to discuss the other two members. Even the newest movement, non-denominational, focuses more on Christ and not much on the Father or the Spirit. It's easy to consider certain thoughts or mindsets legalistic if the entire Trinity isn't taken into consideration, but it's important to see the whole picture if we're truly going to live our lives in faith and in worship.

The Old Testament teaches a lot about who God is as our Father. God continually laid rules and regulations down in front of His people in the Old Testament as ways that He would be glorified through their actions. He was so just in those rules that when they were broken, He often made the decision to end their life as punishment. In Genesis 19, Lot's wife turns around after God tells her not to and she dies immediately. In Numbers 25 24,000 people die because the culture had grown sexually promiscuous. In 2 Samuel 6, God ends Uzzah's life because he touched the Ark of the Covenant. In 1 Kings 11, God removes the lineage of David from kingship over all but one tribe of Israel because Solomon started building idols for his many wives. God is too just to allow sin to be present around Him. We often forget who God is as our Father, or we ignore the past because Christ has come. We fail to recognize that Christ didn't come to remove the opportunity to worship God by being obedient in the things He taught in the Old Testament, but because the only way for us to receive salvation was for Him to die on a cross. The opportunity to worship God through obedience is still present as much as it ever has been. Thanks to His love and His Son's obedience, we can now find forgiveness in our moments of weakness.

This is not to say that rules and regulations can't become legalistic. It's important to look at Biblical lifestyle guidelines as opportunities for worship and not as a checklist of do's and don'ts. Following the rules and guidelines for a Christian lifestyle that are set forth in the Bible shouldn't be looked at as a list with gray spots, but as a template for how to live a life above reproach. We never want to give anyone a reason to question our faith, our relationship with God, or God Himself.

Let's take a quick look at how something can be seen as legalistic versus how it can be seen as a greater opportunity for worship

It can become legalistic to teach that people should give more to the church than a 10% tithe. It would definitely be an opportunity for worship and financial obedience to give more than 10%, but no one is going to be cast into judgement for not giving.

We can be legalistic in views on alcohol and drugs. In Ephesians 5, we're told to not get drunk, but beyond that there aren't any restrictions. Proverbs 20 tells us perfectly though that "Wine is a mocker and strong drink is a brawler." It would be legalistic to teach that alcohol needs to be avoided, but it's another opportunity to show God our obedience in greater ways. Teaching that alcohol should be avoided in certain social settings could be considered "legalistic" if taught as a rule, but could be a great guideline and recommendation for how to live above reproach.

It's even possible to be legalistic in church attendance, dating relationships, words that we use, activities we participate in and many other things. So many people make the mistake of seeing these things as a list of do's and don'ts, when the way that worships God the most is to see it as a list of "do what you can's". 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1 both explain that leaders in the church should be above reproach. This isn't referring to just pastors and elders, but to the entire community of saints who would be identified as Christians outside of the church community. We should desire to live lives that attract people to Christ in an open and honest way, not lives that could be considered fake or hypocritical due to acting in ways that differ from what people believe Christians should act.

What can we do to worship God in even greater ways?

Instead of living every day looking to take advantage in the freedom of gray areas, let's use those areas to be above reproach. It's very easy to live in a way where we seek the approval of man, and when we have their approval, we assume we're doing everything the way we need to be doing it. Instead of finding comfort in the approval of man, we need to find comfort in knowing that we're living exactly how God wants us to live.

Worship is shown outwardly but is experienced by God inwardly. If our inward mindset toward worship is not seeking to serve God in every opportunity, then our outward actions and emotions are only meant for man to see.

The truth about the Trinity is that God is worthy of all of our worship and all of our obedience. Fortunately, He understood that human nature is sinful and gave His Son for us to be free from the harsh punishment of sin. The Holy Spirit is now available to be present in our lives to help us understand God's word, and to lead us and convict us in ways that allow us to be obedient in ways that God experiences as worship.

What areas of your life are you standing around looking for God in where you should be on your knees with hands raised knowing that He's already there?

Settling Soil

As 2014 came around I had some decisions to make regarding my career and current location. Was the company I was working for and the position I was given something I was going to commit myself to for a long time or was it a stepping stone for something else? I prayed and reflected on that question for almost all of last year and knew as I watched the Flip-flops drop on New Years Eve at Folly Beach that I had to make the decision.

I had pretty much decided in early December that things were going really well. I always ask myself if what I'm doing is something that God is using, and I really felt like the answer to that was clearly that He was. So, I waited for my yearly review at work to determine how my company was viewing me as an employee. When the time came I was blown away by how well they had perceived all the time and effort I had put into the company over the last year, so I knew that this was where I was supposed to stay.

I started looking for a house in mid-January. I had originally hoped to find a fixer-upper that I could spend a couple years putting money into then sell it when the time was right, but I wasn't having any luck. I changed my thought process a little and decided I could possibly invest in property instead and just live cheaply while I allowed my savings to develop into something that could afford a house to start a family in. I ended up finding the house below and the owner has accepted my offer!

It's a double-wide home on a permanent foundation, so the only thing that shows from the exterior is the low roof pitch. It's on a half-acre lot a block from the marsh bordering the ocean, and two blocks from a kayak landing where I can walk my kayak to go on weekend adventures! It's north of the city, so I'm hoping it'll be a little quieter and a lot more peaceful than where I'm at now. It has 4 bedrooms, so I hope to rent a couple out in order to have some community in the house, but it'll be great to have some help with the bills too!

My closing date is set for March 31, so as long as I get financing and an acceptable inspection, I'll be moving into this baby in a little over a month! I hope to set aside one room as a guest room, so please come visit. I'll even cook a meal or two!

Life in the office has been pretty crazy over the last six months and a lot of changes have happened, but I'm feeling more and more comfortable with the jobs I'm given and the responsibilities that have fallen onto me. My work load increases and decreases depending on the week, which initially stressed me out, but now I get pretty close to throwing a party for myself on the quiet weeks!

I'm hoping to start taking bigger steps toward starting up work through A Helping Hand once I'm in the house. I had prayed about where to start and have a specific neighborhood I've been praying over for a couple weeks now. Once I'm settled into the house, I'll start distributing some marketing materials and hopefully picking up a few side jobs until I can provide enough work to hand it over to someone else.

I also started dating this really great girl named Laura! She loves Jesus with everything she is and she loves adventure almost as much as I do! I'll tell you more later though. She may end up being the topic of the next blog if she keeps impressing me the way she has been.

The number one prayer request: Pray about coming to visit me in my new house!

Love you all!