Natalie came from D.C. for the weekend and we went to a Tampa Lightning Bolts Game (hockey) and to the Salt Rock Grill for my birthday lunch.
Kenny Chesney and Zac Brown Band Concert- March 19
MORE TO COME...
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Florida Adventures- Part 1
Birthday Weekend- January 16
Natalie came from D.C. for the weekend and we went to a Tampa Lightning Bolts Game (hockey) and to the Salt Rock Grill for my birthday lunch.
Kenny Chesney and Zac Brown Band Concert- March 19
MORE TO COME...
Natalie came from D.C. for the weekend and we went to a Tampa Lightning Bolts Game (hockey) and to the Salt Rock Grill for my birthday lunch.
Kenny Chesney and Zac Brown Band Concert- March 19
MORE TO COME...
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Drowning Out the World
This morning while running on the treadmill at our apartment complex, I was reminded of how difficult it can be to live out the command of Jesus to be in the world but not of it. Jesus in the book of John talks about how we are not to love the things that the world loves and how like him we are not of this world. Paul further commands in Romans not to be conformed to the patterns of this world (Romans 12:1-2). Many of us know these words but they are often so hard to live by.
Sometimes while I work out, I like to listen to podcasts of sermons. This morning I decided to listen to Steven Furtick's (Pastor of Elevation Church in Charlotte, NC) latest message in his series, "Grapes and Giants," http://bit.ly/hqnMVl. I started listening to it as I walked to the gym. However, upon entering the gym, I could barely hear my iPod because another guy using the gym had the TV on MTV, watching the morning music videos, at an extremely high volume. It was so loud that I could not hear my iPod at all. Therefore to combat the abnormally loud volume of the TV, I had to turn my iPod up to its loudest decibel level. Even with doing that, I could still clearly hear the music from the TV. In order to pay attention to the sermon, I had to concentrate on the sound coming from the iPod and let the TV noise fade to the background.
I thought that this was a perfect illustration of how Jesus commanded us to live in this world. We often have no control of what is going on in the world around us, just like I had no control over what another gym member was watching on TV. Our responsibility is not always to change what is in the world but it is to not let what the world is about be what we are about. It would have been so easy for me to turn off my iPod and just listen to the music already playing, but God many times has a word for us that contradicts the message of the world. The problem is that the voice of the world is often louder than the voice of God until we attune our focus to His voice.
This morning I had to concentrate on the sound of Pastor Furtick's voice in order to not be drowned out by the music. Once I concentrated on that, I could hear the sermon clearly. God calls us to discern his voice in the world and to fix our concentration on that and then the noise of the world will fade into the background. Many of us (including me) wonder why we are not hearing the voice of God. How can we when we are bombarded with messages of the world from sex, alcohol, partying, living for self, materialism? So just like this morning when I had to concentrate on the sound from my iPod to hear the sermon, we must concentrate on the things of God to hear his voice and by doing that, we will drown out the world.
Sometimes while I work out, I like to listen to podcasts of sermons. This morning I decided to listen to Steven Furtick's (Pastor of Elevation Church in Charlotte, NC) latest message in his series, "Grapes and Giants," http://bit.ly/hqnMVl. I started listening to it as I walked to the gym. However, upon entering the gym, I could barely hear my iPod because another guy using the gym had the TV on MTV, watching the morning music videos, at an extremely high volume. It was so loud that I could not hear my iPod at all. Therefore to combat the abnormally loud volume of the TV, I had to turn my iPod up to its loudest decibel level. Even with doing that, I could still clearly hear the music from the TV. In order to pay attention to the sermon, I had to concentrate on the sound coming from the iPod and let the TV noise fade to the background.
I thought that this was a perfect illustration of how Jesus commanded us to live in this world. We often have no control of what is going on in the world around us, just like I had no control over what another gym member was watching on TV. Our responsibility is not always to change what is in the world but it is to not let what the world is about be what we are about. It would have been so easy for me to turn off my iPod and just listen to the music already playing, but God many times has a word for us that contradicts the message of the world. The problem is that the voice of the world is often louder than the voice of God until we attune our focus to His voice.
This morning I had to concentrate on the sound of Pastor Furtick's voice in order to not be drowned out by the music. Once I concentrated on that, I could hear the sermon clearly. God calls us to discern his voice in the world and to fix our concentration on that and then the noise of the world will fade into the background. Many of us (including me) wonder why we are not hearing the voice of God. How can we when we are bombarded with messages of the world from sex, alcohol, partying, living for self, materialism? So just like this morning when I had to concentrate on the sound from my iPod to hear the sermon, we must concentrate on the things of God to hear his voice and by doing that, we will drown out the world.
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Food Stamp Challenge
For my Poverty Law class, we are required to do a food stamp challenge. For a week, we are only allowed to use $19.50 to buy groceries. Last night after a delicious meal at Fridays (have to go out with a bang), I went shopping for my food. My first stop was Target. Thanks to www.hip2save.com I knew that Target was giving away a $5 gift card if you bought 10 Smart Ones meals. On top of that, I had a $4 coupon. So the 10 Smart Ones meals were $18 - $4 (coupon) = $14 and I got a $5 gift card! With my gift card, I bought bananas (.69), loaf of bread (.84), box of fruit snacks (1.33), box of peanut butter crackers (1.75), and ice cream sandwiches (1.69). I had to pay an additional $1.63. Total spent at Target = $15.63. If you are looking for a good deal on food, don't overlook Target. They have great deals on snacky stuff and ice cream!
My next stop was Walgreens where I picked up a carton of eggs for $1.19. I always forget to check places like Walgreens and CVS, but they have great deals and good coupons. Today with my remaining $2.80, I am planning on going to Publix to pick up some peanut butter and whatever else I can afford. I also have 8 empty Starbucks bags, so I can get 8 free cups of coffee this week! My whole menu was designed around how I could afford coffee!!!
So, we'll see how this goes. I will eating a lot of Smart Ones meals, scrambled eggs, and PB and banana sandwiches, but I think I will be doing a lot better than some of my other classmates :)
My next stop was Walgreens where I picked up a carton of eggs for $1.19. I always forget to check places like Walgreens and CVS, but they have great deals and good coupons. Today with my remaining $2.80, I am planning on going to Publix to pick up some peanut butter and whatever else I can afford. I also have 8 empty Starbucks bags, so I can get 8 free cups of coffee this week! My whole menu was designed around how I could afford coffee!!!
So, we'll see how this goes. I will eating a lot of Smart Ones meals, scrambled eggs, and PB and banana sandwiches, but I think I will be doing a lot better than some of my other classmates :)
Friday, April 1, 2011
April Fools Day
GOTCHA! Isn't it required that you at least attempt to pull off a prank on this day?
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