Quiet Down Boy!

(Zephaniah 3:14-17, Psalms 22:3, 2 Chron. 20:19, Psalm 98:4-9, Psalm 150:1-6, Romans 8:18, 2 Cor. 4:17, 2 Cor. 10:4-5; Ephesians 6:10-18, 1 John 5:13)

It's almost out of mowing season! Today I mowed for possibly the last time until next spring. When I mow I tend to listen to music and sometimes that ends with my voice hurting by the time I'm done. It's hard not to compete with the lawn mower. However, I have found that mowing is a time where I can get lost in a separate world and praise God. If I lose my voice? Well it's worth it.

I've been a fan of a group called Apologetix for quite some time now. But recently I discovered they have a lot more songs than I realized. If you're not familiar with this group, Apologetix takes familiar songs and makes Christian parodies of them. It's fantastic! One of my new favorites is shown below. Save your Voice Quiet Down Boy.

I love this group! This song has an awesome message too! The world tries to discourage us from praising the Lord, but the Bible says praise him all day every day nice and loud. 

So the next time you nearly lose your voice from singing too loud with WCIC, just know God is smiling down and hears every note you're singing for him. Praise the Lord, Nice and loud boy. :D 

Until next time, keep rippling!

Where's the brakes on this thing?

One thing I've found from owning a car, is that things go wrong and those things cost money. So every now and then when someone else says "I think there's something wrong with you're van", my response is "Eh it's probably nothing."

In this case my brake light had been on for quite some time. Over time the problem got worse. I'm not sure I would have noticed it, if my dad hadn't driven it. He noted that in order for the brakes to 'actually work' you had to push further than you're supposed to. When there's a problem with the brakes, it can be a BIG problem. (Course everyone knows that.)

We as humans have a built in "brake" system that helps tell us when we're about to do something wrong. It's better known as our conscience or our moral compass. As we grow closer to God and dig into the bible that moral compass gets more and more accurate. But it has a weakness. When we do something wrong and get away with it, when a second opportunity comes up the red flags aren't as strong. So it's easier to not stop. Before long you're whole "brake system" is messed up but someone else might notice before you do. 

1 John 3:6 - No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him. 

That's heavy, but that's why we have to keep our brakes in check. And constantly monitor our attitudes and actions. 

Lord help separate me from the sin that tempts me each day. Keep me in check and help me to keep my eyes on you. 

Until next time, continue to make ripples from pebbles. :D

Creating Ripples

Friends! I know I've tried doing the blog thing in the past a couple times... But I'm bringing it back! Not promising anything, but hoping to update somewhat regularly.



A ripple is something unusual in the pattern of the ocean. If you drop a pebble into an area of water, it'll disrupt the water sending little waves out in all directions. Otherwise the water is completely still. Creating ripples is a common metaphor within the church, along with spreading like a wild fire or planting seeds. Creating ripples is something I aim to do with my life, and this blog. Loving God often creates ripples because often enough our love for him prompts us to do things that don't go with the normal flow of water.

My devotions yesterday was on Jeremiah 29:13 - You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

When I read this verse it reminded me of the game hide and seek. Lets say one of the hiders take off his jacket, hat and shoes and arranges them in the closet, then goes and hides under the bed. A good seeker won't believe the jacket, hat and shoes are the hider. Someone wanting to win the game will be determined to find the hider, opening doors and cupboards, looking in thee darkest and dustiest places in an effort to find the hider. The seeker won't settle for first appearances. In our world, there are all sorts of things cluttering our lives and begging for our attention. We can't just settle for glimpses of God here and there, we have to seek him first and constantly seek him. Then out of our love for him, he'll guide our lives from there. I'm reading a book called Crazy Love by Francis Chan. It's about falling in love with God and stepping away from being a lukewarm Christian. I'll probably write more about that later. Such a great read.

I'll  try to write again soon, hope you come back to see more of my ripples as I continue to throw pebbles.

Back to the Routine

And thus Christmas break ended. It always seems to go by too quickly, but it was an excellent break from classes. It's great to be back to a regular routine though. This first week back to classes has been getting syllabi, and adjusting to the new schedule, as well as reuniting with friends and asking about each others breaks. So far it's been a good start to the semester.

Normally I don't do New Year Resolutions. I'm not really sure why I haven't in the past, but I think part of it was a mindset that I'd at some point just go back to what I was doing before. This year I've made it a goal to get in the word every day, and I've found a great bible reading plan with devotional commentary to help me do so. (It's in the Bible app if you want to check it out. It's one of the read a bible in  a year plans.) Also I'm trying something different as far as resolutions go. I'm praying that God will give me a word for this year. Something to inspire me, or something to look for daily for the whole year. (Also inspired by a plan in the Bible app). I haven't quite settled on a word yet, but I like the concept.

I'll admit the discipline of reading the Bible daily hasn't been one I've been consistent at. However, Psalm 1:1-6 provides words of encouragement. It compares a person that meditates on God's word daily to that of a tree planted by a stream. The fruit will grow abundantly! In this psalm it doesn't try to claim that the wicked doesn't prosper, but it does say "The wicked are like chaff that blows away." This is saying the result of the wicked is death, but the Lord watches over the righteous. This passage reminds me that reading the Bible allows me to grow and bear fruit. Reading the Bible (and applying it) may not always be easy, but it's something that is beneficial in our walk with God.