Thoughts on "Conversion" to Christianity...

In intro this is just another article about my ever changing (or growing) perspective of Christianity. As I have mentioned before I've been a "Christian" all of my life, but more recently God has taught me that there is much much more to my relationship with him than I have known in the past. As I believe I have mentioned earlier I gave my life to Christ when I was 3 years old. My relationship with God grew from then on, and peaked when I was around 7 or 8. After that I started to care less about God, don't get me wrong I have never fallen away, but I have definitely taken steps backward in my relationship with Jesus. Anyways, until this year, and more specifically this last summer, I hadn't grown much in God. As you have most likely read in my previous articles God has been working in me more recently.

Back to the title of this article though... Through my life I have always hated the term "Conversion". For me it is defined as forcing your religion on someone, instead of someone truly excepting it because they actually believe it. Recently I was having a conversation with one of my friends whom I had invited to a Christian rally. One of our mutual friends overheard our conversation, and asked what the rally was about. I let my friend explain it because I had brought her once before, and she has a different perspective because she isn't Christian. She said something on the lines of "Oh, it's this big get together where a bunch of Christians try to convert you".

At first this bugged me due to the derogatory meaning of the word "Convert" in my mind. Then I started to think about the word, and why I hated it so much. After I had found meaning for my dislike in the word I started on a tangent of the implications of the meaning.

*****Side Note*****
For those of you who have never entered my mind before. Welcome! It's a strange place, and I feel the need to dig into very random meaningless topics, and try to somehow draw meaning from them.
*****End of Side Note*****

As I dug deeper I found two motives behind conversion for a Christian. Either the Christian is trying to spread their religion to others because Christ told us to in the bible(not because they want to),... Or for those of us who are growing in our relationship with Christ, it is more a sharing of something very valuable to us.

I have found those who have experienced the wonders behind a relationship with Christ, and have experienced the power that comes through the Holy Spirit, can't help but share their faith with others. It is so much a part of them that in just being who they are they share it.

In closing, for those of you who worry about following all of God's commandments, and continually find it a chore to share Christ with others: First ask for God's help, and ask him to shape you. Then seek after getting to know God with all of your heart. You will find the closer you draw to Jesus, the less you have to worry about the laws and expectations because simply just knowing him changes you for the better. You can't grow in your relationship with God, and step backwards in following the laws found in the bible. It just doesn't work.

Enough of you reading though. Go test it out, and tell me how it goes! (Oh, and I don't mind the word convert anymore. It's been redefined to the second perspective now)

Gal 3:23-25 (NIV)
23Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. 24So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. 25Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.

Sincerely,
~That one Dude

Which is more logical: Christianity? or Atheism?

I thought I was going to be done writing, but I came across a youtube video today that won't let me go silent. A guy was trying to push Christianity over as a simple optical illusion (by the way I was doing Psych homework on optical illusions). His point went something like this:



"When praying, all Christians believe that God will answer prayers in one of three ways: yes, no, or wait."



He goes on to say that the same is true about praying to a jug of milk. He starts with the assumption that 'intelligent' people are watching his video, and expects them to think 'intelligently' about what he has to say.

But if you've read my blog long enough you should know that his saying that begs the question of "What is 'Logic' truly defined as?

Webster defines logic as this:
1. The science of correct reasoning.
2. Correct reasoning.
3. Way of reasoning.
4. What is expected by the working of cause and effect.

My arguement is that there are two forms of logical perception. In either case 'logic' can be simply defined as a path by which we are rewarded (whether in the present or future). But how to define the two types of logic? I believe the difference is in where we hope to find our reward.

In the secular (Atheistic) perception we generally look to our financial well being in this lifetime. To always have money, and to live comfortable with as many 'rewards' as we can buy or earn.

In the Christian (mind you not those who simply go to church, for going to church doesn't make you a Christian, but those who follow Christ whole heartedly) perception we look to our reward in Heaven. We believe that the greatest reward is a stronger relationship with Christ. Thus following after the Bible's guidelines we surrender what pleasures we have to Christ in the hope of growing closer to him.

So in it's truest essence I will agree with you Mr.Youtube man. I don't have what you call 'logic', but I'd much prefer my kind of 'logic'. I've tried your kind, but it always leaves me worrying about tomorrow, and now I am at peace. I don't have to worry about tomorrow. Tomorrow will worry about itself. God will take care of me, and provide for the things I have surrendered to him. All I have to worry about is obeying his plan for my life.

Sincerely,
~That one Dude

Just thoughts...

Hey guys it's been awhile since I've wrote, but I have the busiest slacker life ever. From one angle I seem to have my whole week open because of the classes I'm taking, and my lack of job. But it seems like everyday I'm getting more and more involved with church and God's work.

Basically I said all of this to say that I probably won't post very often anymore. Although I will make time for answering questions on this blog still. Whether about God, life, love, my insights in life, or generally just anything.

So please comment! I know the comment thing is always obnoxious. If you want though you can message an idea for a blog to me on my facebook (I'm assuming you're coming from Facebook. Otherwise just post a comment.)

So this is me signing off until you guys try to stump me with life questions ;-)

God Bless!

Sincerely,
~That one Dude

Thoughts on being lazy...

First off I'm sorry I haven't posted in awhile. I've sort of been on a writer's block, but more just being lazy. Anyways, I decided I wasn't all to interested in finishing off my Boundary Waters journal. Feel free to still send questions or comments to me, and I'll do my best to answer your requests.

Anyways, on to the topic at hand: Laziness

I'm not here to condemn laziness (although it isn't a good thing either), because just like everyone else I am quite lazy at times. Instead I'm here to talk about the two types of laziness I have defined over this past summer.

"To each his own" is a common enough phrase that applies to nearly everything, as well as laziness. There is only one way to define the different versions of laziness, by defining what's active in the action of being lazy.

The Action: We'll give a man a board and a saw. His task is to make two boards and to connect them. He may also use whatever other materials he can find.

1). The man is "Type A" lazy.
The man first saws the board in two. He then looks around for glue (because he wants an easy solution to his problem), and glues the two boards back together.

2). The man is "Type B" lazy.
The man first saws the board in two. He then cuts intricate groves into the two boards, and pushes them together. (He doesn't like having to move from his spot and have to find other materials)

There it is folks. Although come to think of it there are two other types.

3). The man is "Type C" lazy.
The man looks at his colleagues projects, and asks,"What's the point? They just put the board back together anyways." (Thus using his mind due to his unwillingness to do physical labor)

4). The man is "Type D" lazy.
The man looks at the board, and doesn't do anything. (He refuses to do physical labor, AND he refuses to put his mind to work finding an alibi)

Sincerely,
~That one Dude

Boundary Waters Trip!!!

Okay people I'm back! Now that I've lost most of my audience. I'll have to see if I can get you guys to read again.

So yes, my Boundary Waters trip. First off I'm changing peoples names because well this is the internet. Not to mention I'd probably get shot by a couple members of the group if I mentioned who they were.

So, for the next week or so I'll post one day from my journal every day. Of course things will be edited out for privacy sake, but I'll keep it as true to my words as possible.

I'll apologize now for the lack of interesting material/detail in some of these posts. I refuse to add any material to my journal though. So if you have any questions feel free to drop a comment, and I'll be more specific.


~Friday the 8th~

To start off, we hung out at Piper's house for a few hours. It felt like forever though. We finally got started, and got as far as Walmart. Chad & Will bought silk boxers. Chad also bought an airsoft gun. The 3 youngest guys bought snacks as well. Then we were off. Will, Chad, and I all in the back with seat belts off. The three of us rotating to the floor.

-Victor's Uncle's Cabin
It was a nice little cabin with an outhouse on the left, and had plenty of sleeping room. We played airsoft for a few hours while watching bits of the opening Olympic ceremonies along with a Vikings game. After we were tired a little, we ate some Ramen and packed our gear. Then Piper and Will went streaking.


Sincerely,
~That one Dude

Thoughts on missing someone...

Today I was browsing a bunch of my Facebok applications. I wandered over to Bumperstickers, and I found that a lot of them had to do with missing someone close to you.

I think most of these weren't thought out enough though. The stickers say you miss a person the most when you're doing an activity that you would normally do with them.

Although the above is true, I believe the times you miss someone the most is when you're actually with them, and you realize that they are going away for a long time.

I have had my share of good byes in the past, and will presently as well. I just had some friends go to the National Fine Arts Festival. I don't miss them that much right now. I do feel bored or lonely on occasion, but the most difficult time was when I had to say 'Good Bye'.

Anyways that's just a random post for you guys. It's not as deep as it usually is. I'm still sorting out a lot of my deep thoughts from camp.

Sincerely,
~That one Dude

I'm back! I started reading "Wild at Heart", and I just had some thoughts on it...

"Adventure requires something of us, puts us to the test. Though we may fear the test, at the same time we yearn to be tested, to discover we have what it takes."
-John Eldredge (Wild at Heart)

I've found that this passage pretty much describes my relationship with God.

The best example of this would be when there is an alter call. Those of my readers who are Christian will probably know what I'm talking about. For those of my readers who aren't Christian, or have never had an alter call I'll explain quickly.

The alter call comes at the end of the service just after the pastor has finished preaching. It wraps up the service, and allows for people to respond to the message (apply their new found knowledge). If the pastor was preaching about how there is sin in our life he may ask all the non-Christians to come up and receive Christ and his forgiveness for them. Then people come up to the alter (bench to kneel at in front of the stage). There they are prayed for.

Anyways, that's what an alter call is. Back to my story.

At camp there was an alter call ever night for different things. The first and last night had the same alter call. He asked for those who hadn't received Christ's forgiveness to come up. The second and third nights were a little different though.

On Tuesday night (the second night) I didn't really feel like the message was ment for me, but I listened anyways. He preached so well, and I could feel the presence of God so much that I wish the message did apply to me more so I could respond to the alter call.

*****FYI: The message was for those students who had had a rough life, and just felt rejected by the world and other such things.*****

God works in interesting ways though. When the alter call came I was sitting down with my eyes closed (they have you do that so other people find it easier to come up), and I was listening to see what he would ask. It hit my like a Tidal wave, "First I want anyone who is suicidal to come up, anyone who has ever attempted suicide, anyone who has even thought of attempting suicide to come up." I can still feel the intensity of those words as I type them know. Anyways I found myself walking to the front, one of very few guys in a sea of females who had responded. Then the shock phase left me, and I was overwhelmed by his presence. If you ever want to see me cry, the alter is practically the only place you will ever see it.

*****Quick side note for you who thought,"He's suicidal?!". I'm not now, but depression runs in my family pretty deeply, and about twice a year I hit an extreme low. You don't have to worry about it though (although I do appreciate your concern). I realize how many people would be thrown into depression if I ever did commit suicide. I care about you guys more than myself, and can't stand you guys getting hurt, therefore it will never happen.*****

Back on topic once again. I'm always scared that an alter call like that will come, and from time to time it does. When I respond though it's some of the most amazing experiences I've had with God. If I don't respond, I end up feeling like crud for not passing the 'test'.

I hope you guys see how this relates to the quote at the beginning of this entry. I also encourage you guys to take the challenges in your relationships, whether with God or not. The challenges and trial are what makes us strong.

To finish off I'll give you a quote you should recognize (although I have no clue who coined the phrase): Anything that doesn't kill you, WILL make you stronger.

Of Relationships with God...

This is for those of you who long for a closer relationship with God, but never seem to grow any closer.

It's a choice. This took me forever to figure out. For the past year and a half I've been trying to grow closer to God, but never seemed to go anywhere. Then I realized during a youth group service that I choosen to hold back. I was scared of what God might ask me to do. I kept telling God I wasn't ready, and he respected my choice.

That night at youth group I decided I would jump in head first. Don't get me wrong though, I was still scared of what God might do, but I realized the benefits/experience far out weighed anything that could be thrown at me. Plus we're supposed to fear God.

As this summer has progressed I have seen myself grow like never before in my relationship with him, and my relationships with other people. I can't believe I just said that though because he just had me cut off two of my friendships for the time being. It's not always easy, as I 've learned in the last few days, infact I've had some my most difficult times during this experience, but along with that I feel God walking right alongside me.

Anyways, I encourage you if you are willing to simply ask God to bring you to the next level in your relationship with him. If you are willing he will bring you to a place you have never been, and it WILL blow your mind away.

As I lay in my room...

Today I found myself more or less in a depressed mood. God had asked me to do something really tough last night, and I have been thinking about it for the last 18 hours. But as I was fasting and listening to worship music in my room today I came across a picture frame my mom had given me for my birthday. It holds a story that I found when I was very young, and has always meant a great deal to me when I'm going through tough times.
Here is the story in it's entirety. I hope it blesses someone as it has blessed me.

Footprints

One night a man had a dream about walking along the beach with the Lord.
The sky flashed scenes from his life.
For each scene,
he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand:
his and the Lord's.
After the last scene flashed before him,
he looked at the footprints,
noticing that at the most difficult times in his life there was only one set of footprints.
"Lord, you said you'd walk with me all the way if I followed you.
But during the most troublesome times in my life,
there is only one set of footprints.
Why did you leave me when I needed you most?"
The Lord replied,
"I love you and would never leave you.
In your times of trial and suffering,
when you see only one set of footprints,
that was when I carried you."
-Author Unknown

Dear reader... (Just thought I'd clarify/edit my previous post for you)

"Kle", as I was reading your comment I must say I did agree with some of what you said. Other parts I just didn't clarify enough, but some I completely disagree with. Anyways, here's your very own post. This is tailor made just for you, and I'm glad I have a responsive reader.

You mentioned that you can't watch pornograpy at 17. This is true, but when I was refering to the magic number '17' it was for my example of rated 'R' movies. Not to mention those who look at porn generally don't follow necessarily legal sites when looking at it, and it's easy to find whether you're 18 or younger.

*Tangent*

As for being 18 to view porn. Porn wouldn't be nearly as much of an issue if it wasn't advertised to those younger than the legal age. You can't tell me it's not. Every day I have to flick to another site because of the ads on the side of the page that have a lady with next to nothing on. It says stuff like "Women who want to get naughty... tonight.", and such. It may be argued that this isn't porn, but it leads to porn. I mean it only takes a quick image search on google with a couple choice words, and Bingo! The jackpot! Other sites will ask you if you're 18, and ask you for your date of birth to check. It doesn't take much intelligence to set your birthdate back a couple of years, and you're in.

*End of Tangent*

I'll agree with your statement that watching a rated R movie pales in the comparison of such things as drinking, smoking, and other such things. Problem is this is a blog, not a book. I'll get to those when I feel inspired to write about them.

~Maybe watching the Matrix once won't do anything to you, but the problem is the effect is cumulative. It's like a slow poison: the more you add (of bad movies and such) the faster the ailment progresses. Also you say that people don't decide to kill people over the media they consume. Look at the kids from Columbine high school. What did they listen to? Marilyn Manson. It was their fault for choosing that media. (and by the way, as I was doing a google search to figure out how to spell 'Marilyn Manson' I got some pretty explicit results)

~Violence is a bad example of what media does to people though. It's easier to watch violent movies and walk away unscathed. But here's one to chew on. What of all the teenage girls who get into eating disorders. You can't tell me they thought of the idea all on their own. They see it all around them, in magazines, advertisements, on television, and other prevalent media forms. You can't tell me that the media doesn't effect these girls. As I've been writing this rebutal I was talking to my friend who previously suffered from an eating disorder, and during recovery had to isolate herself from all of the media that said,"She wasn't perfect enough."

~As for attacking the rating system, I'll agree that I started the article intending to do that, but by the end I simply mentioned that the ratings are there for a reason. They tell us that there is bad content in the movies we watch. From the PG movies to the NC-17 movies, it lists all the reasons why we shouldn't watch it.

~To end on an up note I completely agree that our culture has made us numb to such things in our media. The anchor man will say,"A teen died in a drive by shooting", and we'll flip the channel. It's nothing new, now maybe if he'd been hacked to pieces with a chainsaw we might keep watching, but otherwise we flip to another channel.

~I propose that we try to change our culture if our culture is the issue then. We should start to raise our kids in a more innocent culture. Maybe if enough people listen, maybe, just maybe, we may yet again watch the news and cry for the little boy who just lost his mother and father in a car crash.

Thoughts on "Adult Content"...

After yesterday's post I began to think about media, and just random stuff about it.

Then today I was reading the new issue of Breakaway (Christian magazine for teen guys). I got to the last section where readers write in and ask about media and different artists. One of the readers had asked about Jessy McCartney's new CD. The editor was mentioning that Jessy's lyrics had turned in more of a sexual direction on this latest CD. It said in the article that McCartney thought his previous albums were when he was going through musical puberty, and that now he was 'grown up' in his music style.

This got me to thinking,"What do media ratings mean?!" Everyone knows that an 'R' rated movie means 'Restricted', and you must be 17 or have a guardian at least 21 years old to see it. My thought was "Why is '17' the magical number?" The media assumes that at that age (and older) we have the disernment and maturity to choose our movies wisely, and also to be able to handle what they call 'Adult Content'.

Here's a thought for you though,"Look around at all of the men who struggle with an addiction to pornography. These men obviously can't handle the so called 'Adult Content'."

Bottom line: There is no such special age where you can suddenly watch bad media and be able to leave the theatre unaffected. There are a few people who can handle such media, or have been so involved with it that it doesn't even cross their minds when it crosses the screen. These people are few and far between though.

I know this is hard to swallow, but if a movie is rated for nudity, language, violence, disturbing images, or rated for anything it will affect how you live and think once you leave. It's best to avoid media that tells you that there's a problem in it. Try to go find a different movie. Preferably something G, PG, or possibly PG-13 depending on if it has a healthy story line.