Grateful

Today I am grateful for my bible.

In my Greek class we do sight readings every Thursday and usually I dread them. Even though there is only five us in this class, it is still nerve racking to get up and translate on the spot. Right before my Greek class I have a class that focuses on the theology of the Reformation. In Reformation class we engaged in a very deep conversation on the separation of church and state as well as discussion pertaining to the Christian lifestyle with the perspective of the Sermon on the Mount. Today was probably one of the most intriguing conversations we have had in this class, especially with the elections coming soon.

As I went throughout these two classes I thought of how in love with the bible I have become over the past few years. Being a religion major obviously requires an extensive amount of time spent in the word, and I have savored every moment. The truths I have found over the past couple of years have proven to penetrate my heart like nothing else is capable of.

In high school I enjoyed reading, but nothing like now. I constantly look forward to the next passage of scripture and the truths found in it. The Jesus found in the bible, and all the theology that goes with it is so amazing. As I was sitting in my class trying to read the Greek New Testament I remembered how lucky I am to be able to read the bible this much. I have a major that allows me to dive into my passion everyday and I am so blessed to have that. I also have the ability to continue on in my studies at a higher level and discover even more of the bible I have come to love so much. Today was just one of those days when I realized that I am doing what I want with my life and it made me smile. I am not doing a major with a job in mind (which isn't bad on any account) but I am living out a passion.

Morals

So deer season started. We were pushing at Troy's, and my dad shot a doe. A nice little one from about 10 feet away. We dragged it out of the swamp, and my truck was closest. So we threw it in the back. We get home. My dad says leave it in the back til morning. I wake up to go to work. I try and drag the deer out. It doesn't budge. I get up in the back end and peel the deer off of my metal truck bed. The downside of the deer is left frozen; stuck to the bed of my truck. My own little fur bed.

I'm driving down the road. 6 hours later. The hair has thawed. Hair begins swirling around. Filling my cab through the broken windows that don't shut all the way. Deer hair everywhere. 4 days later. Hair still there.
Moral: don't put the deer in your bed

Law

I have never been sure what Queen Elizabeth does. I am sure she does something but who really knows. I saw a picture of her in todays news and the link was to the Top Ten Silliest British Laws. I know I should be more concerned with all the other stuff I read in the news today, but I thought this was funny.

Most ridiculous British law:

1. It is illegal to die in the Houses of Parliament

2. It is an act of treason to place a postage stamp bearing the British monarch upside-down

3. In Liverpool, it is illegal for a woman to be topless except as a clerk in a tropical fish store

4. Mince pies cannot be eaten on Christmas Day

5. In Scotland, if someone knocks on your door and requires the use of your toilet, you must let them enter

6. A pregnant woman can legally relieve herself anywhere she wants, including in a policeman's helmet

7. The head of any dead whale found on the British coast automatically becomes the property of the king, and the tail of the queen

8. It is illegal to avoid telling the tax man anything you do not want him to know, but legal not to tell him information you do not mind him knowing

9. It is illegal to enter the Houses of Parliament in a suit of armour

10. In the city of York it is legal to murder a Scotsman within the ancient city walls, but only if he is carrying a bow and arrow

Morals

So once upon a time I was a skinny, awkward young man in the sixth grade. Nothing much has changed since then. But the fact remains: I wanted to shoot a deer, despite the fact that I was like 12. So I talked my dad into letting me go out. I took my little $100 bow and arrow, and my dad sat me in a treestand. After an hour or so, a nice little six point walks up. To this day I would still shoot the same deer. My mind was racing. I am gonna be the sweetest kid in the sixth grade. Who else has shot a 6 point buck? I raised the bow up, and all 95 pounds of me yanked the string back. I lined the shot up, and let 'er fly. Perfect shot, kill zone, executed with textbook perfection. I watched, in slow motion, the arrow fly a perfectly straight line and hit the deer. Thud. The arrow then proceeded to bounce off of the deer. The beautiful six point then ran away, leaving a hair-tipped arrow laying on the ground, and a broken-hearted little soul sitting in a tree.
Moral: really isn't one for this story....I apologize
(By the way, I have only told this story to like 3 people in my life. It was a secret until now.)

Kiva

This year I have been trying to handle my finances in a way that is both wise and faith based. I have made a few personal decisions that allow me to accept God's monetary blessing as well as sharing my money with those who need it more. It comes easy to simply throw my money at different charities and I do believe that there are many good causes that need finical help. But for me, this does not seem the wisest move. I have been doing a lot of reading about different ways of helping people financially and I recently have come across (via a professor) something that is really beneficial to those who have money to give, but also those need to think about the future. There is an organization named Kiva that allows you to give money to people in rough circumstances as a loan. Kiva finds people, mostly in third world countries, that have a plan for a business and need a loan to get there. All the money you give them is payed back in a certain time frame that is established when you give. The world does not need people to give more money, the world needs those who have to help those who don't establish a means of obtaining money. The business that the individuals participating in Kiva are trying to build are explained right in their profile and I really believe that this is a good use of money. This is a way on empowering people to build an independent life where they can become responsible for their own monetary issues. Also, this gives us a chance to give, but still have. The sums of money these people are asking for are not huge amounts of cash. They are asking for installments of 500-1000 most of the time. Even then, you are not required to give that much money. Through Kiva you are able to lend as much as your circumstances will allow.

To me, this is a solid method of empowering the poor to overcome their circumstances while still maintaining good finances in your own life. Right now I am trying to save for when I graduate and this fits perfectly into that plan. If I am saving my money I am not using it, so it makes to let someone else use it for a year and then have it paid back in full.

You can check it out at www.kiva.org.

He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for His Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God. - Proverbs 14:31

Hope

I once had a favorite quote. It said something about hope being the single most important ingredient in changing the world. At the time I believed that nothing was more true than what that quote said. 20 years of living in this wasteland has taught me the same idea, in a different light.

Nothing has ever changed my world as much as hope. Hope stepped over every piece of warmth that was once in my heart. Hope can change the world. Unfortunately, hope changes the world into a bucket in which ridiculous ideas of love and happiness are repeatedly dropped into and forgotten about. One more thought hope of good only leads to one more disappointment and that is what is changing our world. This fluffy idea that good happens, but needs to predicated by hope only places people on a wall they are determined to fall from. People are being destroyed everyday because they believe that there is more. They build houses around fantasies that will never cross over into reality. How many tears have been predicated upon failing hope? You cannot crush a dream if you refuse to let it exist. People only hurt you because you are placing the knife in their hand.

Instead if hoping, people need to start realizing. Realizing that the heart of life is not good. Realize that circumstances do not work out and people are nothing more than fools. We need to stop living as if reality is some dream and believing that hope is our doorway into heaven. Start making the best of your situation and realize that you are your greatest gift. No one is going to come running with open arms appealing for your salvation. Stop laying your heart out for everyone to play with. Don't show all the cards in your hand cause you will never have the right hand. Do what you know is right, live the best you can and yearn for glory, but don't place value in hope. Hope is nothing more than a cloud consisting of allusions of better that we cannot help but fall through.