Hope

Why is it that so often we allow hope to remain dormant inside us, suffocated by the discouragement and frustrations that come to us from our daily lives?

Why is it so easy to forget the good things in life, and allow the bad things to weigh us down?

What are you hopeful for today? Hold on to it, it may be the only thing that gets you through a difficult time.

Bad Dream…

i suppose with all this zombie talk, it was about time i had a nightmare about killing zombies…

though i don’t intend to share all of the dream, there is one part that sticks out in my head, and will most likely affect the rest of my day.

there was a little girl, i would say maybe around seven or eight, who i think i was originally supposed to be protecting, but at this point in the dream, she was a zombie. I no longer had a weapon, because the blade kept falling off the sword i was using, making it completely useless. So i was running frantically, trying to get myself somewhere safe and find a weapon, and i run down this flight of stairs, and there’s the little girl, walking. her back was to me (like they do in all good horror films), but she heard me come up behind her and turned around. though her face was slightly morphed, her eyes still stuck out distinctly. brown, round, demonstrating the immense brokenness within her soul. Not lifeless and zoned out, but very much alive. Though it was very obvious that she wanted to eat me, she was walking slowly, so i managed to swerve around her and grab a wire coat hanger, turning around and somehow stabbing it into her throat without much effort. i then proceeded to easily slice off her entire head, stroke by stroke with the coat hanger, as she stood there, totally understanding, and watched me do it, until the last piece of flesh was broken. Then i woke up.

(Is that morbid or what?)

the reason this was so significant to me was that i think i’ve dreamed about this little girl before. another nightmare, another time where i was attempting to save her, that time i think from some sort of children’s brothel or perhaps just an orphanage in a third world country. Regardless of what it actually was, this girl is more familiar to me than i can express, though i am positive i’ve never met her before.

God, what does this mean?

Last Week In Theology…

Pastor Dennis: “okay everyone, let’s just refocus and pray to start our class right.”

Everyone quiets down.

“Dear God, thank you for this day and for … WOAH! that’s a Quran right there!”

(Ben had been using a Quran to prop up his laptop for ventilation purposes)

slightly disrespectful, but a funny moment none the less.

To Find Peace

God, renew my heart, and soul, and mind,
So that all i experience is you inside.

oh how I yearn for an inspiration of your grace,
until then i am content to sit in your warm embrace.

Have a good day everyone, i hope God teaches you something incredible today.

I Always Love A Good C.S. Lewis Quote

A man can no more diminish God’s glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling the word, ‘darkness’ on the walls of his cell.

For You, Maria

Do you not think you’re pretty?
Because you’re the most beautiful one i know.

Do you not think you’re smart?
Because your intelligence is superior to most.

Do you not think you’re happy?
Because happiness isn’t a feeling it’s a choice.

Do you not think you’re loved?
Because i desperately miss hearing your voice.

Do You Surrender All?

My load is heavy and I am weak
I have no strength to spare.
Will someone please help me?
This is more than I can bear.

“I will,” says the Lord.
“I will, because I care.”
I’ll pick up your load,
If you set it down right there.

I hesitate a moment,
a pause, a doubt ensnares.
“Why me, God?” I cry,
“Why is life so unfair?”

“You think life is that bad?”
God answers with a glare.
“What about my son,
Who was beaten, bloody and bare.
And then put upon a cross,
and mocked without a care.
Not to mention bearing all sins,
talk about unfair.

He already took your burden,
Becoming the sacrificial mare.
and all the world did was laugh at him,
and stare.
Oh the strings of my heart
it did so deeply tear.

So tell me why that burden,
on your back do you still wear?
Do you not see that we’ve already
taken your share?
Please come,” He begs.
“I’ve strength to spare.
And your load is one,
I can more than easily bear.”

Peace

Old poem, about 2 and a half years, that i discovered again today.

Sometimes I wonder….Are you really there?
Do you really care?
Is my life complete?
Can I make ends meet?
Will you one day use me
to help make man free?

Some days I wish….I wasn’t so plain,
Life wasn’t mundane,
That I could be pure,
be true and be sure.
I understood you,
and the pain you went through.

But always I know…of Your wonderous love,
pouring down from above.
That I’m wrapped in Your arms,
which protect me from harm.
And Your love will not cease.
You fill my soul with peace.

By Charis Reich
08/11/07

Feelings

i have this distinct feeling in me right now, but it’s a hard thing to explain.

It’s like being sixteen, and goofing off with friends.
It’s like laughing so hard you cry. being in such a good mood that you want to hug everyone around you.
It’s like wishing you were older, and then when you are older, wishing you were young again.

It’s like every good memory you have from your childhood, every good moment as a youth,
But at the same time, missing those moments, those people, and those experiences, so much that it almost hurts.

It’s like eating the food that you were just craving, like being satisfied by a cool drink on a hot day.
It’s like taking a walk on a warm, spring day, and recognizing the depth of the beauty in the world God created.
It’s like being so thankful and content with the things you have that you simply want to burst!

It’s like listening to the radio, when your favorite song from years ago comes on, and realizing that you still know every word.
But then being sad once the song is over, because even if you go home and listen to it again, it wont be the same as in this moment.

It’s like lying in the grass, or having a good hair day, or even smiling without a reason.
It’s like watching a sappy, romantic comedy and loving the ending, but also hating the fact that endings like that aren’t real.
It’s like stopping to smell a flower, or being close to someone you love.

It’s like being thankful between life’s trials,
But then realizing you have to grow, and change, and hurt, all over again.

It’s like looking up to someone, while secretly wishing you were them and not you.
It’s like waking up to find out you don’t have to go to work anymore, so you make yourself breakfast and go back to bed.
It’s like being just out of reach to the thing most dear to you. So close, but not close enough.

I don’t really know what it’s like..
But it’s wonderful, terrible, and brings back a lifetime of memories to look back on.

A loss for words

i have a yearning, somewhere deep inside me. God has blessed me with this feeling, this craving, for something more.
i wish i could describe it, sadly i appear to be at a loss. a loss for the depth behind this yearning, this feeling, this peace and warmth within me.

there is so much more to life than this…
what are you living for?