This post is dedicated to my brother. Corey.
As I write this, I sit in his empty room.
It's different, really.
While reflecting on good times, I am reminded by how much we've been through together. I think about when we both wore fanny packs and thought we were awesome with our 1993 sunglasses. I think about when we argued about who would get shotgun (some things never change).
Know how some brothers are worst enemies? Not true with Corey and I. We're best friends.
I think about times like Jr. Camp, where we did the camp music together, teaching the kids music like they're rockstars.
I remember I remember times when we would sneak out of the house to get taco bell (again, some things never change).
I think about how many songs we've written together. I think about how many church services we've been together. How many times we've played music together. Countless hours spent practicing. Countless songs learned. Countless chords learned.
Corey can write songs like he's a poet, and can play drums like he's Carter Beauford.
I am honored every time I walk onto a platform, stage, or venue with him.
More than a musician, he's a true friend.
I remember times when we cried together until there were no more tears. What we thought was destroying our life, was actually turning us into men of God. I'm not sure who was more of an encourager, but we held each other up.
I remember a time when I would get irritated at him because he was ALWAYS Mario, and I was always Luigi. Good 'ol Nintendo 64. Or the endless games of Mario Kart wars. Or the endless games of Nintendo Madden football games.
Through all these times, I've grown closer to him. He's my best friend.
As I pass into this next phase of my life, I realize how different it will be in the house. He's moved out, into his own place. One of my favorite parts of Sunday mornings was hearing Corey sing in the shower. Just, classic. I know he's moved into the next phase of his life, marriage. Such a great time, I know. It's gonna be amazing to get to be around my future sister in law, Danielle, more and more. I love her to death, and I wish both of them the best in their lives together.
Corey, I love you. And I always will.
The following 10 things are facts of life.
1) Mom will cry when she reads this blog.
2) I don't think we'll ever have a "non-competitive" game of golf in our lives.
3) Your raps will never cease to bring pain to my abdominal region from laughter.
4) I don't care what you say, we won that ping pong tournament in high school. We got the T shirts.
5) You have 3 distinct phone voices.
6) Texting quotes, movie lines, song lyrics, and random junk is the most fun with you.
7) We're weird musicians sometimes. Just. Weird.
8) Your sermon "Carried To The Table" still rings in my ears.
9) You turned me Mac. And I haven't gone back.
10) I love you.
Jan 29, 2011
Jan 26, 2011
Walk in Love
Reflect God in how you love.
Ephesians 5:2 says "And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us,
and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savor"
I'm gonna be honest here. When I walk into a room, and I smell a really good perfume,
I'm going to look around to see which girl is wearing it. It's attractive.
Girls, when a guy walks into a room and has a very good smelling cologne on, you're going to notice it, right? Right. Chances are, you'll remember him too (or the cologne).
Getting a new cologne is a challenging thing for me. I know what I like, and I stick to it because I know I won't be let down by them. One cologne I will never wear is "Obsession". For some reason, it has always smelled disgusting to me. The mere thought of wearing this cologne makes me cringe, because I know what it smells like without having it right in front of me.
Check this out. Ephesians 5:2 says that God gave himself "an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savor". Maybe it's saying that God gave himself as an offering so we could use His love as a "cologne" or "perfume".
When a non believer is in a room with a Christian, something should be different about the Christian. God's love should be so strong on you that people will notice. People remember you. People remember.......what you're 'wearing'.
Just like the bad cologne, if you poorly represent Jesus and His love, chances are people won't want that in their life. They're going to recognize that name you were wearing and will not want that for themselves.
We must represent the name of Jesus in love. I never want somebody to hear the name of Jesus and instantly think negatively because of something I did. We must represent Jesus like it's the best cologne we own.
Ephesians 5:8. This is what we are.
Ephesians 5:2 says "And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us,
and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savor"
I'm gonna be honest here. When I walk into a room, and I smell a really good perfume,
I'm going to look around to see which girl is wearing it. It's attractive.
Girls, when a guy walks into a room and has a very good smelling cologne on, you're going to notice it, right? Right. Chances are, you'll remember him too (or the cologne).
Getting a new cologne is a challenging thing for me. I know what I like, and I stick to it because I know I won't be let down by them. One cologne I will never wear is "Obsession". For some reason, it has always smelled disgusting to me. The mere thought of wearing this cologne makes me cringe, because I know what it smells like without having it right in front of me.
Check this out. Ephesians 5:2 says that God gave himself "an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savor". Maybe it's saying that God gave himself as an offering so we could use His love as a "cologne" or "perfume".
When a non believer is in a room with a Christian, something should be different about the Christian. God's love should be so strong on you that people will notice. People remember you. People remember.......what you're 'wearing'.
Just like the bad cologne, if you poorly represent Jesus and His love, chances are people won't want that in their life. They're going to recognize that name you were wearing and will not want that for themselves.
We must represent the name of Jesus in love. I never want somebody to hear the name of Jesus and instantly think negatively because of something I did. We must represent Jesus like it's the best cologne we own.
Ephesians 5:8. This is what we are.
Jan 6, 2011
Reflections
re·flec·tion
[ri-flek-shuhn]
–noun
1. the act of reflecting or the state of being reflected.
2. an image; representation; counterpart.
3. a fixing of the thoughts on something; careful consideration.
How does one reflect? What does one reflect?
Well, according to Matthew 7:16, one will be known by their fruits. So, what they "reflect" in their life, or by the fruits they produce, they will be known.
So what we reflect in our daily life is the same thing as producing fruit.
The fruits of the spirit are: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control.
Is your life reflecting a patient, joyful person who exudes faithfulness? If not, chances are your reflection is a bit blurry.
I want to aim to reflect Jesus in my life. Salvador quotes it perfectly in their lyrics that read "Lord, let me shine, shine like the moon, a reflection of You".
I want to shine like the moon. Without the sun, we would never see the moon. Likewise, I don't want to shine by myself, I don't want to be anything unless Jesus is shining through me.
At Apostolic Truth Church, SURGE Student Ministries will be starting a series called "What Does _____ Look Like?"
We will look at issues such as faithfulness, holiness, love, christianity, etc. We will be speaking on topics like "What does love look like?", and dig deep in scriptures with the students to find out what true ____ looks like. Fill in the blank for whatever you're struggling with, question, or want to know more about.
This will be the start of Reflections of an Intentional Life.
[ri-flek-shuhn]
–noun
1. the act of reflecting or the state of being reflected.
2. an image; representation; counterpart.
3. a fixing of the thoughts on something; careful consideration.
How does one reflect? What does one reflect?
Well, according to Matthew 7:16, one will be known by their fruits. So, what they "reflect" in their life, or by the fruits they produce, they will be known.
So what we reflect in our daily life is the same thing as producing fruit.
The fruits of the spirit are: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control.
Is your life reflecting a patient, joyful person who exudes faithfulness? If not, chances are your reflection is a bit blurry.
I want to aim to reflect Jesus in my life. Salvador quotes it perfectly in their lyrics that read "Lord, let me shine, shine like the moon, a reflection of You".
I want to shine like the moon. Without the sun, we would never see the moon. Likewise, I don't want to shine by myself, I don't want to be anything unless Jesus is shining through me.
At Apostolic Truth Church, SURGE Student Ministries will be starting a series called "What Does _____ Look Like?"
We will look at issues such as faithfulness, holiness, love, christianity, etc. We will be speaking on topics like "What does love look like?", and dig deep in scriptures with the students to find out what true ____ looks like. Fill in the blank for whatever you're struggling with, question, or want to know more about.
This will be the start of Reflections of an Intentional Life.
Jan 2, 2011
Last year. This year.
In 2010, an extremely short list of what I did consists of:
Recorded bible verses for bible quizzing
Got about 15 parking tickets.
Learned the ABC's in sign language.
Did shows at four different coffee shops in Appleton.
Went to Florida.
Started teaching piano lessons.
Ran a half marathon
Worked for Yahoo, Inc.
Fell in love with the principles of Dave Ramsey.
Opened for Bebo Norman.
Opened for JJ Heller.
Worked at EAA.
Got played.
Started the youth choir.
Got hired to play piano for 6 hours straight.
Wrote two songs that will never be heard by anyone
Developed a love for insanely awesome christian rap. Lecrae, in particular.
Was a part of a mentoring group called "Jonathan's Project", where three older guys mentored 12 of us younger (18-30) guys.
Had an iPhone 3G, transfered to the iPhone 4.
Synced 4 iPhones, 3 iPods, 1 mp3 player, and an iPad with my phone. Yes, total of 9 devices.
I would like to see how much i spent at starbucks. Hah. That'd be classic. I may do that this year.....
But, most importantly.
I prayed more. I read my bible more. I witnessed more. I developed my own walk with God. I was sensitive to the spirit. I grew through hard situations. I grew through tough times. I grew when it felt like my world was crashing. I mentored young men to grow closer to God. I started a sexual purity group of guys at my church. I accepted the call of God on my life.
In 2011, I want to:
Run the Fox Cities full marathon.
Manage my money better.
Take on more piano students.
Eat more sushi.
Drink less caffeine.
Blog more.
See a miracle.
Read more books. My brother's goal is 12 this year. One per month. That sounds like an awesome goal. Yes, I'll do that.
Buy clothes at thrift stores more.
Write more worship songs.
Go on a missions trip.
Go to California.
Pray more. Every day, to be specific.
Go to more concerts. I'm thinking 10 concerts sounds good for 2011.
Mentor guys more.
Destroy the lines of separation in our youth group.
Pray for somebody in a public place.
Speak to the youth group more.
Grow closer to God than I ever have been in my life.
In general, this is my goal: to be INTENTIONAL. Intentional with the relationships with the people around me, intentional in my personal walk with God... intentional about my life.
Recorded bible verses for bible quizzing
Got about 15 parking tickets.
Learned the ABC's in sign language.
Did shows at four different coffee shops in Appleton.
Went to Florida.
Started teaching piano lessons.
Ran a half marathon
Worked for Yahoo, Inc.
Fell in love with the principles of Dave Ramsey.
Opened for Bebo Norman.
Opened for JJ Heller.
Worked at EAA.
Got played.
Started the youth choir.
Got hired to play piano for 6 hours straight.
Wrote two songs that will never be heard by anyone
Developed a love for insanely awesome christian rap. Lecrae, in particular.
Was a part of a mentoring group called "Jonathan's Project", where three older guys mentored 12 of us younger (18-30) guys.
Had an iPhone 3G, transfered to the iPhone 4.
Synced 4 iPhones, 3 iPods, 1 mp3 player, and an iPad with my phone. Yes, total of 9 devices.
I would like to see how much i spent at starbucks. Hah. That'd be classic. I may do that this year.....
But, most importantly.
I prayed more. I read my bible more. I witnessed more. I developed my own walk with God. I was sensitive to the spirit. I grew through hard situations. I grew through tough times. I grew when it felt like my world was crashing. I mentored young men to grow closer to God. I started a sexual purity group of guys at my church. I accepted the call of God on my life.
In 2011, I want to:
Run the Fox Cities full marathon.
Manage my money better.
Take on more piano students.
Eat more sushi.
Drink less caffeine.
Blog more.
See a miracle.
Read more books. My brother's goal is 12 this year. One per month. That sounds like an awesome goal. Yes, I'll do that.
Buy clothes at thrift stores more.
Write more worship songs.
Go on a missions trip.
Go to California.
Pray more. Every day, to be specific.
Go to more concerts. I'm thinking 10 concerts sounds good for 2011.
Mentor guys more.
Destroy the lines of separation in our youth group.
Pray for somebody in a public place.
Speak to the youth group more.
Grow closer to God than I ever have been in my life.
In general, this is my goal: to be INTENTIONAL. Intentional with the relationships with the people around me, intentional in my personal walk with God... intentional about my life.
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