must find a balance Posted by poolboyjames on July 18, 2010 at 1:08 PM comments (0)why is church so extroverted?
why do pastors always say things like "touch 3 people and say i have the victory" ..or whatever they say it really irks me sometimes i go to church and i'm just trying to hear the message (and volunteer whenever possible) and leave, but i feel like people are all in my mix or i feel like the pastor is trying to take me out of my comfort zone today the pastor kinda talked about that sort of thing and he said "he who desires friends must show themselves friendly" and he said if u feel isolated or alone or like everyone's against u its because u are too focused on yourself the Biblical example he gave was when Paul was in jail he didn't care about himself.. he was in jail writing letters to believers trying to encourage them in their walk with Christ and trying to spread knowledge and wisdom through his letters.. he wasn't focused on his predicament as much as he was focused on the things of God so i do agree with what he was saying that church is a unit and we shouldn't feel isolated from one another but at the same time every person is not the same and every person is not going to necessarily like that happy all-in-your-face-and-space type of thing so i dnt kno.. i am willing to help out but i still have personal boundaries u feel me i DO want to be involved in the church and have a role and i want to be friendly.. but it doesn't change the fact that i am still me.. yes we are all here for the same purpose, to do God's will through Christ.. but again we are all different in our own ways so i dnt kno it seems to me that we are both justified in our way of thinking.. he is pushing extroversion to unite the church as friends and promote the sense of community, but my view is that everyone is not going to desire the same style of attention/affection.. cuz me personally.. i feel as though i am at church for the right reasons, but i still like my space and sometimes i feel invaded at church with all the extroverted commotion if u go to church, what r ur thoughts?
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spiritual gifts Posted by poolboyjames on July 18, 2010 at 12:03 AM comments (0)1st of all, to distinguish the difference, the bible words are in gray and my words are in blue
no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit. 4There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men. 7Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 8To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. 11All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines. but now I will show you the most excellent way. 1If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing. 4Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7It always protects, always hopes, always perseveres. ^all the above is found in 1 corinthians chp 12 & 13 you can't tell a christian they aren't a real christian because they aren't a prophet, or because they can't heal people, or speak in tongues.. all those are good gifts and if u can attain them that is a blessing but at the end of the day God gives spiritual gifts as He determines because the body of Christ is just that.. a BODY.. with different parts and people with different gifts and abilities this is one thing i dnt like about religious people, they will try to tell u u aren't a real Christian because u haven't lived up to a standard that they created.. like "so and so never does backflips in church so they aren't a real Christian!" SMH.. it really irks me.. i told my mom recently that those people she thinks are so "spiritual" could likely have no relationship with Christ and/or they could totally be in church or ministry for the wrong reasons.. for all she knows they could be walking out of a strip club and goin directly to church.. IN THE SAME OUTFIT lol true religion is not about outward appearances or appearing "holy" as a matter of fact that can get u played.. like say u are doing a fast.. if u try to appear hungry and dirty and beat up so that people take note of your "holy suffering" u will not receive any breakthrough from God james 1:27 says: Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. again, i think all spiritual gifts are great and to be sought however i am very against uninformed christians who try to put people down and make them feel like they are not a part of the body of Christ for not having certain spiritual gifts 21The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 22On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable there should be no division in the body, its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. one time Posted by poolboyjames on July 18, 2010 at 4:56 PM comments (0)one time i was talking to a person about Christianity and they relegated righteousness to "trying to get brownie points" ok can i just say that pissed me off? why does Christian righteousness and doing good and helping people and living up to a standard have to be compared to a childish thing like "brownie points" ? ...like i found it to be very insulting they were saying how a different religion does good things for no reward so they must be better than Christians ok.. so because Christians have a God who is good and merciful and loving to us, we aren't as valid as another religion that has no God or afterlife? so if this is the case and u somehow gain acclaim of some sort for doing something for no apparent reason then why don't u go to work and tell them to keep ur paycheck like what on earth.. its like people find any way in the world to discredit Christianity "brownie points" smh that is so demeaning.. how about saying Christians have a REAL RIGHTEOUS AND JUST GOD WHO LOVES US AND SEEKS JUSTICE FOR US.. because the good shephard's eyes are on His sheep we should feel shame for that? because we will inherit eternal life our efforts are ridiculous? because our God is a good father who seeks to bless His children we should be humiliated? Christians don't help people and we are called hypocrites Christians help people and we are called insincere or we are "trying to get brownie points" people and their stupid notions.. like leave it up to an ignorant person to turn serving God into something that is childish, selfish, or shameful if God chooses to reward those who obey Him then that is a blessing.. God CREATED righteousness so how are you going to say "righteousness" without God is more honorable than righteousness with God? like it was so ignorant and offensive that i didn't know what to say.. so i'm going to say it here: you and your antagonizing na-na-na-boo-boo attitude toward Christians will amount to nothing.. at the end of the day, you are blind and you don't even know it (just wanted to get that off my chest) coffee (drug free pt. 2) Posted by poolboyjames on July 17, 2010 at 4:43 PM comments (0)ok i wanted to talk a little more about coffee
ok when i was going thru withdrawals for a bit i went looking for websites on how to stop coffee addiction this one i found drew me in however as i kept reading it, it started saying a bunch of ish about how coffee is good for u i was sitting there like "where's the statistics about how coffee makes ur penis shrink n ish?" ..i didn't need to hear good things about coffee.. i needed bad statistics that would help strengthen me to stop turning to coffee all the time this website was so weird because even tho it was to help people to stop being addicted, it kept stating the benefits of coffee so i was just like really frustrated and eventually i just shut my computer off so i didn't really have any outward support.. whenever i told people i was addicted to coffee they laughed at me n ish.. so i had to go it alone and i didn't think i could give it up but God definitely stepped in the mix and now i know i'm free from that addiction which brings me to this song here.. the song is called "black coffee" .. its by tricky and it is a good description of what my addiction was like I feel so lonely, in this weekday blue stay at home and drown my past regrets In coffee and cigarettes moody all morning, moody all night I drink black coffee. the other thing i want to point out is.. ok u see how she says coffee AND CIGARETTES? its like saying they are in tandem with one another, they both are addictive ways of "coping" or "getting by" or "relaxing" like coffee may be less detrimental to ur health than cigarettes, but u turn to coffee for the same reason u turn to cigarettes, for a temporary relief, masking the root of ur issue.. my point is that.. people think "how can u be addicted to coffee?" but the reality is that in some ways it is very similar to smoking cigarettes i'm not saying coffee is bad, but i personally was just overboard with it.. i always wondered how i was going to stop drinking it.. it seemed impossible so for anyone who is a java-head like i was.. who wants to stop but doesn't know how.. i am telling u, u CAN stop.. i believe God helped me out definitely.. so my advice to u i guess would be pray for help and if God tells u to do something (or not do something) then obey that and i believe your addictions will begin to fall away peaCe the real me Posted by poolboyjames on July 17, 2010 at 2:32 PM comments (0)the thing about this picture is this is the real me.. this is who i am.. i can take pictures where i look a certain way or have a certain flair or style or whatever but this is the real me..
i like things in life like beauty, comedy, or whatever good things life has to offer, but on the inside i am really searching more for meaning, significance.. i am thinking deeper than the average person at any given moment the surface of anything is appreciated but it is not what i deem as most important an uninformed person may buy a car purely based on aestheticswhereas a mechanic who knows cars will purchase a car based on aesthetics, price, as well as what is under the hood thats not to say i know more than everyone but it is an example of how i feel a lot.. like some people are simply trying to figure out what to do on a friday night whereas i'm tryin to figure out life itself like fun is cool but in the face of all things considered, immediate pleasures are not as important as they are often thought to be so whoever is reading this.. i guess for the sake of being honest u should kno this is the real me.. behind my eyes at any given moment this^ is me hm. Posted by poolboyjames on July 16, 2010 at 2:24 PM comments (0)better is open rebuke than hidden love
proverbs 27:5 drug-free Posted by poolboyjames on July 16, 2010 at 12:35 AM comments (0)sooo
recently i went like 5 days without coffee.. honestly i don't even remember the last time i went that long without it.. im sure its been over a year.. i'm ashamed to say, maybe even two so yeah i just went 5 days without it.. then yesterday i got coffee again, drank it and compared the feelings of being coffee-free and being a coffee drinker here's what i learned... coffee is wildly overrated. it is garbage.. coming back to it has been pretty terrible i noticed my mood was pretty stable when i was off the java once i drank it again i went up then when i came down i got angry and it negatively affects other areas of my overall health and wellbeing.. i even noticed i actually think better/quicker/clearer without coffee than with it coffee was a crutch but going 5 days without it has shown me how wack it is u think it helps but it doesn't.. don't get me wrong maybe it will help u during a 12 hour shift at work or maybe during finals when u are sleepy but i was drinking it every day and going without it has opened my eyes to how stupid and lame coffee really is that 5 days was pretty amazing.. like i'm not deficient in any way, shape, or form like there's no reason for me to depend on coffee cons: it stains my teeth it costs me money it is addictive it makes me urine a lot it detracts from my overall health bothers my sinuses makes u fat (kinda depends on the type, but still) contributes to my boredom and apathy about life contributes to feelings of anger pros: temporary "buzz" i just don't need it.. period.. i am fully capable of doing anything i need/want to do without it.. plain and simple it is of NO USE and now that i know this.. my intent is just to keep it movin current ish Posted by poolboyjames on July 16, 2010 at 4:51 PM comments (0)i've been having some real hard times lately
it is hard sometimes feeling like no one is in my corner.. i know i have God and nothing will replace that however at the same time God is not a person who can visit me or chill with me or anything sometimes life feels like i walk around trying to ignore a gaping hole in my soul no matter how much i ignore it, my subconscious screams at thetop of its lungs for me to find a way to patch the hole i had a REALLY bad moment the other day when i had a hard time all day then at the end of the day when i turned my phoneon i had one message.. it was my mom telling me i made her cry on her birthday it was a misunderstanding, she thought i didn't call her when i actually reached out to her 3 different times that day so i was sitting there like.. i didn't even know what to say or do i just sat there like wow i've been going through so much stuff on the inside as well as the outside and to top off my day (despite my efforts) i made my mom cry on her birthday sometimes i just sit and wonder why my life is so ... 'off' like what would life be like if there was peace, fulfillment, and stability as opposed to the things i actually find myself contending with all the time its almost like i don't know who i am anymore in a sense because so much stuff is going on around me and inside my head like for example why is music such a chore now? like i have all the equipment and i don't even work on it anymore because other things tug at me and make music seem almost insignificant or like a waste why does it feel like so many things i want in life are two steps ahead of me? should i even ask why? probably not i dnt kno man. like for real i find myself in a very uncomfortable place right now i will say i am happy i finally found a church tho, and i have direction in my life, i know who i want to be and where i want to be, i got some good music to listen to, and at the end of the day i always have a place to stay so i dnt kno i know i am going through a lot of changes and things right now just in general.. however i am blessed at the same time so i have to dig my feet in the ground and refuse to succumb to my cynical nature and just keep it movin despite what i deal with "do not cast away your confidence for it has great recompense of reward" hebrews 10:35 "We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed." 2 corinthians 4:8-9 gotta keep it movin' peaCe two won't do Posted by poolboyjames on July 15, 2010 at 11:27 AM comments (0)No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other
^matthew 6:24 in the bible that wasn't referring to male/female relationships but still isn't this the whole reason why cheating is so wrong? once u give yourself to someone else in an affair, its pretty safe to say the one u were devoted to has just been made into an enemy of sorts even if ur still nice to ur original spouse, the fact is ur lying to them and being dishonest about who u are and what u are doing when they're not around again: No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other yep, sounds about right in record time Posted by poolboyjames on July 15, 2010 at 9:34 PM comments (0)sooo i got back to clarksville not too long ago and decided to find a church to go to
sunday came around and i decided to just go and find a church i remembered one church i saw before, and so i went there.. but it was no good it was like 85% senior citizens, 100% white, and 0% age 17 to 35 when i walked in, this old guy said something about getting me a button-up.. i guess he didn't like the shirt i was wearing so i turned around and left when i was going home i thought about trying another place then i said wait.. God wants me to go to church right? and He wants me to depend on Him right? so i was like forget this i'm going to go back to bed.. and i'm just going to trust that God will show me the right church for me i said God please show me a good church or something like that and that was it, i gave the issue to God with my trust and wentback to bed that was sunday, its thursday and i just got back from this church i found was led to i enjoyed the service, but wow isn't that funny that i trusted the Lord for a church and got one so quickly? it made me think about things like.. sometimes u pray for something and u never see it or u don't see it for a long time.. but i asked for something that i know God wants me to have and got it very quickly with no research or anything.. i found it when i happened to look over and see a sign i don't exactly know what to make of this, i'm sure there is a lesson in here somewhere but i am not sure how to apply it i mean i have gotten a lot of prayers answered, but this one was (like i said) completely effortless on my part.. sometimes u pray and u still have to go through something to get what u asked for but for this particular thing, it was different.. it seemed like God really took it upon Himself.. and i ended up stumbling into church as opposed to doing online research or visiting churches every sunday for weeks if someone can explain this phenomenon to me i would appreciate it.. why was this so easy and some prayers seem so much more difficult to bring into fruition? iono but i'm out peeps peaCe |
JaimsHere are my 2010 blogs. I can honestly say I like looking back over these, so check them out. They're teh hotness. Archives
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