holycrusader913's Xanga

Friday, February 09, 2007

Fri, 09 Feb 2007 03:12:51 GMT

ohh... how i miss xanga.

The endless hours of homework procrastinating....

...like right now....

But i'm mostly doing this for Alex... lol.

So i'm supposed to be doing an essay on "Hiroshima" but i haven't read it, and have no clue what to write about. It'll be fun.

Sooo... I thought i'd share some of what's been going through my mind.

What does it mean to love people?

What does it mean to put others before yourself?

WHY should we put others before ourselves, and WHEN should we?

John 13:34-35 "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.

Key word there: commandment. Notice God doesn't say "All people will know you are my disciples because you're such a good person", or "because you go to church every day", or "because you do this and that", but "if you have love for one another". It's God's primary concern.

Here's where it gets good:

Luke 6:27-28 "But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you."

God doesn't just want us to love those who are easy to love. He doesn't want us to please ourselves by withholding love from those whom we don't feel deserve it.

So... we figured out God wants us to love others, but how do we do that?

Philippians 2:3-4 "Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others."

Okay, so practical advice #1- be humble. Humility means looking to other's interests.

Ephesians chapters 4 and 5 give some great advice for loving others.

- "put off your old self" - change your habits!
- "speak the truth" - pretty obvious i think
- "do not let the sun go down on your anger" - this is important and commonly over-looked. Basically, don't hold a grudge. If you feel you have a right to be angry, then you should at least take the time to fix the situation, otherwise your anger is unwarranted.
- "Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear." - plain and simply: build others up. There is honestly no place for words that tear others down.
- "Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slandor be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you." - speaks for itself.
- "be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us,"

Philippians 2:24- "Do all things without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world"

So, there's some pretty good practical advice for living a life of Love that honors God.

One final thought:

Luke 9:23 "And he said to all, 'If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it."

Loving others isn't something we do to make ourselves feel good, or make ourselves look like a better person. It is self-sacrifice. Humility in the truest sense of the world. We should love our enemies DAILY, not just when we feel like it. It is not a simple act, it is a completely different mindset, a different attitude towards life. Paul said it best- "put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness." (Eph 4:22-24)

That's what it's all about.

Tuesday, September 26, 2006

Tue, 26 Sep 2006 03:08:36 GMT

soo... i'm totally behind on my ap psych work, obligated to do some website work that i'm having trouble with, somewhat stressed over college decisions, tied up at work, and on top of it all, i'm going to have to start singing in the praise band at FBCE that i'm leading, 'cause there are no strong leader-vocalists. We'll see how that goes- i'm not all that great of a singer, but i like to think i'm alright, and at least i can be confident, and know where we are in the music.

And the best part is, i'm loving this whole stressed out thing. Really. Call me sick and twisted, but I get some sense of satisfaction and fulfillment when i'm busy and stressed. I don't get it really. I feel bad about myself though when i sit around doing nothing.

Visited Hannibal-LaGrange today. I was very, very impressed. They are really small, only 450 resident students, and about 350 commuter students. The religion department only has 4 professors, but they're all amazing, and are very prestigious- they could get a job at any seminary they wanted, making tons of money, but they genuinely feel called to HLG because they feel their teaching is more than a job, it's a ministry. These guys are crazy awesome though, two of them have worked on multiple translations of the bible, like the Holman Christian and the New Living Standard. They've written lots of commentaries and scholarly stuff as well- they're like experts in greek and hebrew, so that's awesome. I really like the small feel, and the campus is beautiful. I was really hoping to find a college like this- small, with a small religion department, but with awesome professors that I really like. The average class size is like 6-10 so that's amazing.

Now I can't decide between HLG and Moody. lol. Now my efforts are turning towards prayer and seeking God's will than searching out more schools.

Saturday, September 23, 2006

Sat, 23 Sep 2006 02:23:12 GMT

hmmmmmm.... so.

life is pretty sweet- and I mean that wholeheartedly, not superficially.

Marching band tomorrow- 'twill be a blast.

I hit "new entry" thinking I had something to say, but I was wrong.

sorry.

Wednesday, September 13, 2006

Wed, 13 Sep 2006 02:55:36 GMT

I think the things I need most right now are:

1) a xanga entry to get out my thoughts
2) time in prayer and in the word
3) to finish at least half my calc homework, as I have not done any calc homework at all yet this year, and I have alot to do for the collection friday O.O

So, a couple things going through my head.

First of all, I think something I need/want really badly right now is someone to understand me, and someone who will let me understand them. I deeply thrive on relationships with people, it's what keeps me goin. I've had quite a tough time the past 6 or 7 months with my move, leaving my best friends, and having to make new ones. No one here acknowleges that in the least. I just feel like I want someone who I can share that with. AND, i'm not really being "needy" or anything here, as I want to do the same for them. I know people hurt, all the time. I sincerely want someone to share their deepest hurts with me, so I can understand that. It's not even necesarily a helping thing, where I want someone to help me, or I want to help someone- I just want the relationship where you share deep hurts and emotions with someone. That's what I really want in a girl, but it doesn't even have to be romantic, just a sincere, caring relationship. I've been looking for that for quite awhile now and haven't found it yet. Maybe I should be more patient? I definatley don't think very many of that type of relationship exist.

maybe I should put an ad in the paper?

lol, just kidding. I would never do that.

goodnight.

Sunday, August 13, 2006

Sun, 13 Aug 2006 05:01:47 GMT

Well, i'm not a protestant pastor, but i suppose you could say I aspire to be one, and I found this interesting- so here goes.

Questions for Protestant Pastors

By what title would your Church identify itself, denominationally?

- Southern Baptist

Describe the authority structure of your church.

- Well, if you want to get specific:

Most church business is carred out by a "church council" composed of laymembers and all the staff. The church council creates committees of laymen (and a LOT of committees) to carry out specific church functions, such as financial, building maintenance, church constitution, personel, etc. These committees are sometimes "supervised" by an ordained pastor, or not, depending on the nature of the committee. These committees bring their proposals before the church during (usually) quarterly business meetings, during which all major church matters are decided and voted upon. Anything from budget to constitution/by-laws to major monetary donations. Also the deacon body (laymen, but ordained as deacons through a selective, biblical proccess) takes a leadership role when it comes to service. But pretty much the congregation holds the authority. All the baptist churches are completely autonomous, there is no govermnental "higher power" beyond the local church. There is a convention, and associations of which churches can be members, but these have no control over churches. They simply help churches work together better, largely with missions.

And obviously, everything is deeply rooted in prayer, so that God's will is followed in every decision, large or small.

As far as beliefs go, God's Word and Christ himself hold all the authority- no pastor is considered infallible or anything like that.

What is your definition of Predestination as you understand it?

- My personal definition of predestination is that God, being omnicient, knows who is and who isn't going to heaven, definately. Beyond that, I can honestly say I am still in prayer and searching. I do believe that god creates people who he knows will follow him, and some he knows will not. I do not want to say anything more as I am still seeking God's wisdom on that topic. I certainly, however, do NOT believe in calvinistic predestination where there is no free-will. The elimination of free-will makes us robots, and is completely unbaised and rediculous.

-If you wanted a non-personal definition, I was taught the T.U.L.I.P. accrostic by a friend.

Total Depravity (also known as Total Inability and Original Sin) - we are inherently sinful, and we cannot bring salvation for ourselves, without God.
Unconditional Election - God does not "pick" because of anything personal, or individual merit, he simply picks. (lol how does this make sense?)
Limited Atonement (also known as Particular Atonement) - Jesus's sacrifice can't save everyone, only the elect.
Irresistible Grace - the elect are simply the elect- they can't "resist".
Perseverance of the Saints (also known as Once Saved Always Saved) -self-explanatory.

Do you believe it? Does your church teach it?

The T.U.L.I.P. (calvinism) no, and no. I do not believe it, and my church certainly does not teach it.

My personal definition, yes I believe it, but am still searching. My church has no official stance on the issue (which i am aware of), but generally it is not taught.

What is your definition of Free Will?

- All humans have the capacity to choose their actions. We have the ability to choose right from wrong, and to choose to follow God, or not. God gave us this choice.

Do we have free will?

- Certainly.

If we have free will, how does this coincide with predestination?

- It does, somehow. Again, i'm still seeking God's wisdom on this subject. There is no real "predestination" in the truest sense of the word, so i suppose it doesn't matter?

How does your position on predestination effect missionary activity?

- It (my personal definition) gives me hope really, because it tells me that there are people who God has prepared to hear the gospel. Sure God doesn't say "hey you're gonna believe in me", but he certainly prepares people to hear his truth.

What are the sociological effects of these doctrines, do you think people behave differently, depending on where their church lies on the spectrum between predestination and free will?

- Umm, yes and no. Obviously, on the extreme sides, it is probably a major factor in how they do things. However, believing neither extreme is correct, I don't think they contain the motivation to really change things much. I think the middle of the spectrum is where the truth is, and it's where God's spirit is at. When people find the truth, and the holy spirit is with them, then the truth affects their lives. I think in this issue, the truth affects people's behavior more than the lies (extreme sides) do.

Do you think that there are any differences with how Calvinism is taught and/or practiced today that differs from the original teachings of Calvin? Why has it changed?

- Oh, I'm not a Calvin expert, but I would say yes. I think it has changed because of the legalism of people, aka satan's influence. People take what Calvin said and they magnify immensely out of porportion, and make it a central focus of what they do. It is similar to the "Luther" movie, when after Martin Luther was excommunicated and went into hiding, some rogue followers of his started a huge, violent, bloody rebellion against the Catholic Church, which was not at all what Luther wanted.

Are there any catechisms or confessional statements in your church, which codify the position of the church on these issues?

- yes, we do have a doctrine, as most baptist churches and institutions do.

http://www.fbcellisville.org/info_WhatWeBelieve2.htm (not the entire doctrine I don't think)

How is one justified?

- Through faith in Christ, and faith in Christ alone.

Rom 3:24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,

Rom 3:28 For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.

How is one saved?

- By believing in the one true God, believing and understanding that God sent his son Jesus, who is also fully God, to earth to die for our sins. Putting their faith in the fact that Jesus died for our sins, and then rose again on the third day, victorious over death. Repenting of their sin, and commiting their life to Christ and to righteousness.

God determines salvation based on the sencerity of the person. The criminal on the cross next to Jesus was truely sencere, and put his faith in Jesus, so thus he was saved. That is the simplest explanation of our beliefs.

What is sanctification, does it have a role in our Salvation?

- Sanctification is a result of salvation. If someone is "saved" but there is no sanctification, then they are not truely saved. Salvation grants us the capacity to become sanctified- or pure, and righteous. Someone that is not saved cannot be sanctified.

Can a person know with absolute certainty, that he/she is saved?

- Yes, when they know with absolute certainty that Jesus is the Christ who has saved him/her through his sacrifice, then they know with absolute certainty that he/she is saved.

Is Once Saved Always Saved true?

- Yes-

Eph 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,

Eph 1:13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,

Since salvation is not attained by our own acts, then our own acts cannot repulse salvation. God does not take back his gifts, nor does he remove his seals.

Can a person lose his Salvation?

- No.

Does Hell exist? Who goes there?

- Yes. All who deny Christ, and do not put their faith in Him.

Does God create some FOR Hell? Predestinarianism (destined for Hell)

- Again, to be honest, i'm still searching about that one. I want to say no, but Romans 9 and 10 points to yes- I cannot deny that. I think, however, that Romans 9 and 10 is pointing out that God did create ("edured") people knowing they would go to hell, which I do believe.

How do you react to the quote: “The only difference between the person who goes to heaven and the one who goes to hell, is the horse God puts him on to ride in on”.

- Totally unbaised and wrong. The difference is their decision. However, some of it may have to do with God's influence. Certainly not "which horse god puts him on".

Is the grace which saves us, imputed to us or infused in us? In other words are we declared righteous by God, or are made righteous?

- Yes, God "infused" the Holy Spirit into us, so that we may be righteous.

Eph 1:13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,

Mar 13:11 And when they bring you to trial and deliver you over, do not be anxious beforehand what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour, for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit.

Luk 12:12 for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say."

Joh 20:22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.

(the list could go on, but I will stop)

Hopefully that gives you some insights.

In Christ's Love,

-Kraig

Tuesday, August 01, 2006

Tue, 01 Aug 2006 04:43:10 GMT

A friend wrote a very interesting article on religion, and while I strongly agree with some of it, and disagree with some, I would like to share it with you, and my response.

article- http://www.xanga.com/xsoxc/513928286/item.html

my response:

on one hand, i completely agree with a few points you bring up. On another hand, I think I might be able to try and clarify a few things for you.

First of all, dogmatic religion isn't the way it should be. That is never what God intended, nor is it what we should be doing. If I am not mistaken, the word "religion" is never written in the bible, nor was it ever spoken by Jesus. religion, especially dogmatic religion, is simply a human creation by people trying to define God, or make their own definition.

About personal faith, that certainly is not finite. Obviously since the church isn't right, we cannot simply accept it's beliefs as truth. Our parents are certainly not always right, so we cannot accept their beliefs as truth. So what we are left with is personally interpreting the Bible and the world around us to determine our beliefs on God. Our "spirituality" depends on a personal relationship with God, which also is not "finite", as no relationships are. If God is perfect, and we are imperfect, there is no way that we can always be right, so the relationship suffers because of us. C.S. Lewis describes the christian life, and just life itself, as a serries of "peaks and troughs"-I think almost any genuine christian would say that their faith has risen and fell, changed, and went through different phases throughout their life. Anyone who has a "finite" faith probably does not have faith at all.

Another point, as a christian, I wouldn't really say there is any "ultimate spiritual act". My spiritualism does not rely or depend on acts, it is a relationship and a faith. As far as "feeling close to God", i wouldn't say that is right either. Christianity is not about a "feeling". I don't even think there is any sort of end-all-be-all nirvana type thing for christianity. Sure there may be a point where you feel you are fulfilling God's will, and doing pretty good, but those moments are certainly not finite. Like i said- peaks and troughs. Anyone who thinks they "feel close to God" ALL the time probably has little faith at all.

There's alot more I'd like to write, but it would take awhile. I would like to say I truely believe you are right when you say alot of people are spiritually pointless, they don't interpret things theirselves, and religion can be a hinderance to true spiritualism, or true christianity. I do think, though, that you misunderstand alot of the point of christianity. True christianity isn't a religion, it's a spirituality that realizes we are sinful, imperfect beings, with a perfect creator that loves us and wants us to know him and be with him. Throw in the fact that he inspired some people to write some important stuff down as a guide, and he sent his son to die for our sins, and go from there. God never intended for us to be dogmatic, creedial, or "religious". Rather he wants us to be spiritual and dedicated, while realizing that there is an absolute truth (a whole different topic i'm sure we could talk about for hours lol)

if you have any points/opinions/questions please comment!

Monday, July 17, 2006

Mon, 17 Jul 2006 04:02:00 GMT

i'm home from chicago- that was an awesome trip. I got to spend time with pretty much all my friends (except natalie- lol sorry, you were busy when we called, and i guess i kept forgetting the rest of the week) so that was awesome.

fun time after church tonight, we played some games 'n stuff. Then we went home at 10, 'cause some kids are lamewads and decided to go home.

I'm in kindof a weird semi-melodramatic mood right now. It's not really a deep mood where i'm thinking about things, it's more light, and kinda enjoying the moment, but it's sort of a bitersweet feeling too. I like bittersweet times, they build character. My mantra would have to be "Life is bittersweet". It's true.

Here's an awesome song that i'm definately feeling at the moment.

"I'm not alright" -Sanctus Real

If weakness is a wound
That no one wants to speak of
Then “cool” is just how far we have to fall
I am not immune
I only want to be loved
But I feel safe behind the firewall
Can I lose my need to impress?
If you want the truth, I need to confess

I’m not alright
I’m broken inside, broken inside
And all I go through
It leads me to you, it leads me to you

Burn away the pride
Bring me to my weakness
Until everything I hide behind is gone
And when I’m open wide
With nothing left to cling to
Only you are there to lead me on
Cause honestly, I’m not that strong

I’m not alright
I’m broken inside, broken inside
And all I go through
It leads me to you, it leads me to you

And I move, and I move, and I move...closer to you
And I move, and I move, and I move...closer to you
And I move, and I move, and I move...closer to you
And I move, and I move, and I move...

I’m not alright
I’m broken inside, broken inside
broken inside, broken inside
And all I go through
Leads me to you, leads me to you

I’m not alright, I’m not alright, I’m not alright...that’s why I need you

**EDIT**

lol so i had the weird feeling that i've put this song up before, but that's okay. It's awesome enough it needs to be up twice. And now i'm actually putting the song in the background, so you can hear it in all its splendor!

Saturday, July 08, 2006

Sat, 08 Jul 2006 13:47:59 GMT

<afk: in chicago for the week>

actually i'll still be able to access a computer all week, so if you need anything, email me- kraigory@kraigory.com

Thursday, July 06, 2006

Thu, 06 Jul 2006 01:48:51 GMT

alrighty, how's it goin folks?

i'm keepin busy as usual, went shopping yesterday and got me a new digital piano and a two-tier stand, so i've got a pretty sweet setup now. Pictures soon.

Been working on my website a ton lately- it is in the final development stages. Hopefully in about a week or two (probably two- i'm going to chicago next week) it will officially go live, and i'll start spamming links to it everywhere and demanding that you visit it. www.kraigory.com for anyone who's interested in checking out its progress. It is going to be a discussion-based site, focusing on various topics from religion to life in general. I'm very excited about it, and many of the people who read this I will be encouraging to get involved.

So yeah, i'm uber excited about going up to chicago for a week, it will be great fun. I'm going to be kindof a hobo all week, moving around from place to place.

------------------

lol, I totally left that top portion unfinished and unsent for like, 7 hours, while i went to church. Dustin (our youth minister) called like at 2, and told me our guitarist wasn't going to be there. Now that's a problem because we already knew our drummer and bass player weren't going to be there- one is in Kenya and one (Phil Klopenstein- alot of you know him) is at Interlochen music camp. Soooo... it WAS going to be me and the guitarist, which would be fine- but now it was just me. I am not good enough or experienced enough to lead worship. lol. I can play with the band, thats fine- but not lead on my own. lol. So I told him that, but he insisted that I try, so i said i would =/. Thankfully we found a guy to play drums, a girl to sing, and a girl to play guitar. Unfortuantely, the new drummer and guitarist were very inexperienced- neither had played with a band before. lol. Sooo... needless to say it was a fun night- we praticed for like an hour and ended up with three songs pretty solid. We all made a few mistakes, but we made it through every song, they sounded like songs, and it was actually pretty good, for only having played together an hour, and two of the members never playing with a band before. Good times- God always provides, and makes the situation work out. Thankfully. lol.

Thursday, June 29, 2006

Thu, 29 Jun 2006 02:22:14 GMT

wo0t im back from x-fuge in panama city.

freaking awesome.

but.

not as good as it could've been- too much free time on the beach and not enough Jesus.

i'll write more when i have time.

for now, i'm watching star trek (the next generation serries) that phil let me borrow while he's at interlochen (music camp- he plays bass guitar).

AND

i'm finally opening up the site i've been dreaming about for a long time now.

www.kraigory.com

wo0t.

it's still in development, but at least it looks pretty and i figured out how to get it goin.

**EDIT**

THIS: http://eon8theinvestigation.ytmnd.com/

is really creepy. You gotta watch the whole thing, it starts off with updates on the situation that you wouldn't get if you haven't seen it.

And my personal suggestion is not to visit www.eon8.com, as it logs your ip address among other things, so if it really is something, you're screwed. lol.

although, it is probably some advertising thing. lol.

**EDIT**

so..... yeah..... i SWEAR i didn't get pwnt by some web developer in florida.

I was honestly a little freaked out by the eon8 site, possibly just the eeriness and mystery about it, possibly just the hype. The fact that nerds nationwide on the internet couldn't figure much out about it concerned me- the certificates were shady, the ip whois was shady, the host was contacted but couldn't really find anything out. All I can say is the guy who came up with it was a genious- he did all the right things to make it mysterious and intreging.

the site was just a "social experiment". lol. Some dude in florida came up with the idea to study the effects on the public caused by a mysterious site as such. I believe the site is down now- www.eon8.com- you can check. It contained a countdown timer, and it hit zero at midnight tonight, and a message replaced it outlining what all the guy did, and the results. It is amazing how this thing has spread across the internet over the past few months, especially even the past day or two. Craziness.

This is a backup copy of the message when it hit 0d 0h 0m, as the site isn't accessable anymore.

http://silvrlabs.com/deployed21b.php.html

it was fun while it lasted, i guess.