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| I'm moving my blog over to WordPress. It is going to be the same thing that it has been here, except that I am going to try to write more useful posts, and post them more frequently. I will also be posting my goals every month and writing about my experience achieving them. I have named by blog Ovrflow based on the idea that I want my life to overflow with the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3, Psalm 23:5, John 10:10)
Ovrflow: http://ovrflow.wordpress.com/
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| Today was a snow day at the University of Akron. The second snow day this semester. It is unusual for Akron to call so many days off for snow. I had a very interesting day. I began with sleeping in. I didnt sleep in too late, I was too excited to enjoy my snow day. I took a walk around campus. I didn't accomplish my dream of building a 12 foot tall snowman in front of Buchtel College, but I did see several very interesting snowmen. And snow-women:
 (credit to Melissa Dunfee for the picture)
The students at Akron appear to be concerned about political correctness. Good for them, but although they may be politically correct, they certainly do not know how to cook.... the Exchange Street Residence Halls had a fire alarm around noon... apparently someone was reheating pizza a little bit too intensely... in the microwave. How in the world you can set off a fire alarm while cooking in the microwave is beyond me, but it was a good excuse for a snowball fight with the residents. Following the snowball fight, a large group of us decided to go sledding. It was a perfect workout for me, since the rec was closed for the snow day today. After a couple hours of sledding, I went out to dinner followed by a movie at my place. Good day. Now I am heading off to bed satisfied and looking forward to tomorrow. How was your snow day?
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| Over the last year I've been learning about things that God has given us to point to His existence. I don't believe anyone can prove God exists. How can finite beings prove the infinite? But I do believe that God has given us three main signs that point to His existence so that we are without an excuse if we choose not to believe in Him.
1. Creation - It is so easy to take nature for granted. Especially when we have a selfish focus. But take a day (or night) and go outside and spend some time soaking in the beauty of your surroundings. My personal favorites are stars, wind and water (ok, and roses, I'll admit it). No matter what you believe about how nature came to it's current state, It's hard not to at least have a sense of "more-ness" behind it, like there is somehow more meaning to what you're experiencing than simply the arrangement of molecules and energy. Not proof, but a sign. 2. Conscience - This has been a big point in my own life. I went through a time where I had stopped listening to my conscience, and found myself doubting God's existence. Over spring break, I read The Barbarian Way by Erwin Raphael McManus. In the book, Erwin McManus talks about a conversation he had with his son. His son had gotten into a fight at summer camp. He asked his son if he heard any "voices" telling him what he ought to do. His son said "Yes, I ought to forgive the boy I got in a fight with." He then asked him if he could identify the voice, and his son said "Yes, it is God." With that story he suggested that our conscience is the voice of God speaking to us. Every time we listen to our conscience we are tunning our hearts to hear the voice of God, and every time we ignore our conscience we are hardening our hearts to hearing the voice of God. If we continue to ignore out conscience our hearts will harden and it will become harder and harder to hear God's voice, to the point where we will not only deny hearing it, but also deny ever having heard it at all. After reading that book, I decided to start listening to my conscience, and I found that God started speaking to me again. Voices in my head are hardly proof, but again, a sign. 3. Law - If you take the time to read the ten commandments, you'll realize that you haven't followed all of them. If you're concerned about being a good person that might bother you. That's the point. The Law points to the fact that there is a standard. Again, not proof, but it a pointer. A sign.
So there ya go. Maybe you were looking for a sign. There's three. Maybe you weren't. Well, at least its a thought. What do you think?
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| Alright... I'm feeling good about this. Xanga is making a comeback. Even if it's just for tonight. :)
I just read through a lot of my old posts. It was good to remember the places that I've been in my life, and how God has brought me through to the place I am now. Looking back on what has happened since this June, it has definitely been all God carrying me. I'm thankful for the things God has done and is doing in my life.
This semester I have been getting much more involved at school than I had been, and I am very thankful for that. I moved into a house right next to campus this January with some guys I met on my trip to Florida over Christmas break. I'm living with 12 other guys, and so far it has been a great experience! I got a job working on campus (also through someone I met in Florida over break) and I'm thinking about moving into the residence halls for the fall semester. I have plans to go to a camp in Pennsylvania this summer for three months. It will be the longest time I have ever spent away from the familiar, but I hope that God will do a lot in and through me this summer. I'm also getting more involved with the college ministry at the Chapel in Akron (which is who the Florida trip was with). I've gotten to know a large number of the people there, and I've been helping twice a month at the tech desk for worship. I am very happy to have a place to serve God.
I was thinking about serving God today. Well, I thought I was thinking about serving God, but I was actually thinking more about serving myself. I believe that serving God will eventually lead to the ultimate fulfillment and satisfaction. I have been serving God with that in mind, but lately I think that has become too much of a focus for me. If I'm only serving God for what I can get out of it, then I am really serving myself. That's not really serving God at all. I was reflecting on it a little bit, and I found that I am actually very concerned with pleasing myself. When I pray, I find myself asking God why I feel so unfulfilled instead of seeking to know Him more or to be more pleasing to Him. I decided to do a little Bible study on the topic of pleasing God (using a new Bible study tool that I found at http://beta.biblestudytools.com/) I found that what pleases God is more an attitude of the heart than the specific actions we perform:
Hebrews 11:6 "...without faith it is impossible to please Him..."
Psalm 147:10-11 "His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse, nor his delight in the legs of a man; the LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love."
Psalm 51:16-17 "You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise."
1 Chronicles 29:17 "I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity. All these things have I given willingly and with honest intent."
And I was also reminded that I can't work out the heart change that I need on my own:
Phil 2:13 "…work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure."
So there's an update on my life. Pray that God will continue to work in me both to will and do for His good pleasure. :)
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| "Moses spent 40 years thinking he was someone special, 40 more years
realizing he was nobody, and then another 40 realizing what God can do
with someone who realizes they're nobody without Him."
I think I've spent most of my life up to this point thinking I'm someone special. Over the last few months that's ended. It seems like I'm going into a season of realizing I'm nobody. I already know the rest, that God can do something with someone who realizes they're nobody, but I don't think I've fully realized that I'm nobody without Him. Hopefully getting there.... because I can't wait to start realizing what God can do with me.
Uh... maybe I should spend some more time writing, if I actually want people to read this. I just re-read it and it's pretty bad. But then again it is 2:30 am. Let me know if you followed that.
Here's the article that inspired me: http://www.relevantmagazine.com/god_article.php?id=7377
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