Messages from the Flock: REVIVAL!

Hey guys!

     So, I was checking out another blog and I realized I haven't written in anything in about five months!! Freakin' crazy. I remember back in the day when I was writing multiple blog posts in one day and I thought I was being irritating. Anyway, that's not what I'm here to talk about.
     As many of you remember, last year I began what we called Messages from the Flock. This was a time when anyone could send in posts regarding their spiritual life with God and other people. Last year it was a huge success with about 7 people sending in powerful writings about their own life experiences with God.
     As many of us can attest to, there is an unspoken (get it?) power in someones testimony. The act of recounting our own faults that we have struggled over speaks into the lives of others and calls them out on what they have been or are struggling over now. With this said I want to issue a challenge. Tell us your story. Sit at your computer or your writing desk and write it all out. Send it in! It can be signed or you can remain anonymous, but let us in. Allow others to learn from past mistakes. Let us see if we can't make just a few people better off with the knowledge of those of us who understand what they are going through.
     For those of us who posted last year, I would be happy to accept posts from you, but try to be different. Send in something you didn't last year, and also don't forget to encourage others to send in posts also. So, write it out, type it out, or...something! JUST WRITE!
   
     Ready? This year is going to be fantastic.


     GO!



Contact Info:

Written:
Josh Lewis
MSC #222
8435 NE Glisan St.
Portland, OR 97220

Email:
Odyssey312@gmail.com

My Devotionals.

     "Time with Me cannot be rushed. When you are in a hurry, your mind flitters back and forth between Me and the tasks ahead of you. Push back the demands pressing in on you; create a safe space around you, a haven in which you can rest with Me. I also desire this time of focused attention and I use it to bless you, strengthening and equipping you for the day ahead. Thus, spending time with Me is a wise investment. 

     Bring Me the sacrifice of you precious time. This creates sacred space around you--space permeated with My Presence and My Peace." - Jesus Calling

     I was convicted after reading this latest entry in my devotional earlier tonight. Often I go about my day without stopping to give God my time, knowing that He is always with me and I always have prayer on my side. God understands that our days are busy and that our time is precious, but we should not use take advantage of this understanding. 

     In this busy and corrupt world, any time we can spend with a pure and righteous God is valuable. We shouldn't just pray every now and again though; yes, praying is good, but He wishes that we spend more time with Him, quality time. Any time spent in the presence of God should be worthwhile and not spent thinking about the petty things in life. 

     With all of this said, push back the demands of modern life and just sit down with your Savior. God wants nothing more than to spend time with you so you can share in the joy of his everlasting love. Take some of the time that would otherwise be spent flitting around worrying and rest in His presence. Any time you can use to worry He can use to bless you if you will only let Him. 

God, 

     

     You understand the stresses of this world. You understand that in this world, our time with You can become strained though You do not intend it to be so. Lord, calm our hearts. Let us know that though we ought to set aside time for You, that we can spend every moment in Your love. 

Amen.

There is Power in the Image of God!

     On the way to volunteer for my churches rummage sale set up I was listening to the radio. As the car started the first thing I hear is the lady on the radio talking about how we were created in the image of God and how this image held power. Though she was speaking on not letting fear into the house hold, I wish to center my talk this morning on this idea that there definitely is power in the image of God.

26 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in out image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”

27 So God created mankind in His own image,

in the image of God He created them;

male and female He created them.

28 God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”

29 Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. 30 And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so.

31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.

     God made us in His image to rule over the land, to rule over the birds in the sky and fish in the sea. God intended us to be the stewards of His creation. The image of God is one of power and this is evidence. If we were beings of lesser power then we wouldn't have the ability to rule. Though intelligent, if we were to look like, say a cow, then even though our intellect may out match any other beasts, we would not have the power to rule. God intended us to be beings of power, beings of influence.
     Perhaps this is why we have such a strong influence upon each other. The most haunting images among ourselves is seeing harm fall upon a fellow human being. We have power over one another. We alone possess the power to stand up to one another, we possess the control because God has given it to us. Yes, we can be trained as animals, however, the allowance of thought and therefore, the ability to break these bonds are the tools our creator gave us.
     We lead. God gave us the power to lead. We are given the will to lead one another. God leads us spiritually so that we may lead each other physically.
     And perhaps most important, we are given free will to choose. Though given a pure example of perfection, we are given the ability to choose to follow...or not. Even in the Garden we were given the free will to follow. God planted the tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil allowing us to have the free will to either eat from or not to eat from that tree. Though strongly encouraged to not choose the fruit, and even given the ultimatum that if we did we would be kicked out, we used that free will to commit the very first sin.
     Though we are allowed free will and we use it freely and against God Himself, He loves us regardless. God granted us power as we are His creation in His own personal image. We are given power over ourselves as well as all of His creation, just as long as we are humbled by Him and follow.

Not in the Name of the Doctor (Series 7 Finale Theory).

*SEVERE SPOILERS AHEAD! PROCEED WITH EXTREME CAUTION!*

"The Name of the Doctor" (Final Moments)

     Now, usually I don't post works like this. However, at the end of the latest installment of Doctor Who, we witness the Doctors big secret, and in light of all the theories popping up, I simply wish to share mine. 

     "What I did, I did without choice." 

"I know"

"In the name of peace and sanity."

"But not in the name of The Doctor."

     These are the words spoken just before the scene closes, Matt Smith walks off with Jenna-Louise Coleman in his arms, and John Hurt turns around. Ok, let's analyze what we know from this scene: 

- The Doctor has more regenerations than we yet know about. 

- This new regeneration has done something terrible that somehow violates what The Doctor stands for.

- The actions this regeneration did, he did so without having a choice in the matter. 

- The new regeneration is not known to Clara who, as we see in a previous scene, walks into the time-stream of The Doctor to save him from the Great Intelligence. 

- This new regeneration is one that The Doctor we know is trying to forget. 

- The Doctor has a violent and vengeful streak that does not seem to make any sense given what we know he believes in. 

     One theory surrounding this event is that John Hurts Doctor is a new regeneration, that is to say, a regeneration that happens post-Matt Smith. I would say this is false in that Smith's Doctor seems to know who he is. Thus this theory is logically incorrect as The Doctor is usually (that is until this episode) strongly opposed to traveling along his own timeline. 

     Another theory concerning Hurts Doctor is that he is somehow Doctor number 0. This theory postulates that the Doctor did something horrible that caused him to have to leave Gallifrey in the first place, later taking up the title of The Doctor as a promise to heal the galaxy. This theory though is proven incorrect as it is accepted that William Hartnell is accepted to be the very first Doctor, no previous regenerations coming before him. 

     The third theory is a theory concerning Hurt being the real ninth regeneration of The Doctor. This is the theory that I personally buy into. The theory states that Hurt is the Doctor that fought in the time war; that he is the regeneration that takes place in between the eighth and ninth Doctors. This means that nine is ten, ten is eleven, and eleven is actually twelve. The theory goes on to state that the action Hurts Doctor did without choice, to preserve peace and sanity, is destroying Gallifrey and locking the time war off from the rest of the time and space. This action would be against the name of the Doctor as he is a man who stands against violence, relying instead upon logic and words to ease tense situations. 

     I personally believe that he is the 9th Doctor. You see, when people go through traumatic experiences, their minds possess the power to block out the memory so that it doesn't haunt them and inhibit their lives forever. I think a version of this happened to him. Hurts Doctor fought in the time war and did what he had to rather than what he had promised himself and the universe. Rather than fight with words and logic, he realized that both sides of the war were never going to stop, so he destroyed both and locked the time war away so it wouldn't effect anyone or anything else. He is the Doctor that broke his promise of healing. The Doctor realized that if both sides were to continue, they would rip apart the whole of time and space, so he did what he thought he had to: he destroyed them so they wouldn't destroy anything else. 

     This theory would seem to allow compensation for such incidents where the Doctor showed a violent streak that didn't seem to fit his character. Such times would be in series 1 when, upon finding out about the existence of a Dalek he thought dead, The Doctor snaps and attempts to destroy it with an alien weapon found in the alien museum the event happened in. Rose would later have to talk him down. Another event is during the final moments of Tennants Doctor. Donna's grandfather gives the Doctor a gun, and rather than refuse it, he takes it. Later we find The Doctor in a stand off between the returning Gallifreyan court and their president, Rasilion, and the ever insane Master. Two enemies The Doctor had thought dead, both coming back against him. In this moment the Doctor raises the gun to Rasilion then alternating to the Master. The Doctor claims to despise guns, yet in this moment he uses it to try and fend off his two supposedly fallen enemies. In these, and many other moments, the violence and vengeance of Hurts Doctor shows through. Previously, we had no standing for why The Doctor seemed to become violent, yet now there seems to be an example of reason. 

     In the scene posted above we see that Clara has no idea who this regeneration is. She becomes increasingly worried as she explains to The Doctor that he is the eleventh Doctor. She has absolutely no idea who this man is though the only other person than herself is the other regenerations of the Doctor. This can be explained. When Clara walked into The Doctors time stream, she did so to help save the Doctor from the Great Intelligence who had begun to kill the Doctor at every moment in his time stream. However, she never helped Hurts Doctor, which doesn't seem to add up. I believe the reason for this to be that his regeneration is time locked. 

     Hurts Doctor was the Doctor that fought within the time war, which he time locked. When Clara helped all of the Doctors, she could not have helped this Doctor as she could not go into the time war. All the events of the war (including himself) being locked within. This would also explain why we have never heard the Doctor explain about his secret. The Doctor seems never to explain about himself until it is absolutely necessarily, life or death necessary.  If Hurts Doctor is a regeneration locked within the confines of the time war, then there wouldn't seem to be any scenario where The Doctor would need to explain about him. At the end of The Name of the Doctor, we see Smiths Doctor explaining about his secret because he realizes that he is about to become an integral part of his life once again. 

     I believe Hurts Doctor to be the actual ninth regeneration, the regeneration that fought within the time war. At the conclusion of time war, The Doctor destroys Gallifrey and his people, committing genocide. The destruction of Gallifrey was the decision made without choice, yet also against the promise he had made to himself and the universe. The promise to be a healer and wise man to all in need. 

 "What I did, I did without choice." 

"I know"

"In the name of peace and sanity."

"But not in the name of The Doctor." 

     

The New Look

     Those of you who know me know that I am a firm believer in the idea that pages like this ought to change something occasionally just to keep things new and interesting. So, with this being said, what do you think?! I've updated the page to a new format and added a photo of the Doctor, Amy, and the TARDIS after an episode from season 5. So, please! Let me know what you think by commenting below!

Cataclysm

     The power that brought Christ back from the dead resides in all who accept Him as their Savior! We fell to our desires and reveled in sin, but when we called out as one, He heard our pleas. The Lord sent His one and only son to sacrifice Himself so that we may live within His kingdom forever. His love for us is unmatched, no worldly expression can begin to explain His passion for our lives. Jesus knows every detail, you don't even need to say. He holds you when you weep and picks you up when you fall for He loves you more than anything He has ever created. We are His most prized possession. We are the love of the world. Jesus is king and we are His bride.

Cataclysm

Christian Identity.

     In the light of recent happenings with famed Christian metal vocalist of As I Lay Dying, Tim Lambesis, I wish to speak on the importance of identifying ourselves in Christ.
     As people, and especially to us in this younger generation, it is becoming increasingly easy to let ourselves become wrapped up in the latest big artist. As this happens, we begin to identify with this person as a form of our own identity. We read about their daily lives, not noticing that while doing so we begin emulating it. We constantly look to others as a models for what our lives should look like, not realizing that we shouldn't be basing our lives off of anything from this world.
     I am close with some people who are confessed "metal heads," who were legitimately let down (not to say they were reliant upon him for identity) upon reading about Tim Lambesis fall into what we here will call "major sin." The confessed Christian had been a beacon of light for many young Christians who wished to be apart of the metal scene yet keep their faith. He showed many thousands, no-doubt, of young Christian "metal heads" that it was indeed possible to have a strong faith in Jesus Christ yet participate in the metal scene. Needless to say, with his fall came much disappointment.
     In this dark time though I would like to offer some consolation. There is a much bigger person to keep our hope in. A person who will never fall to the sins of our broken world, a person who knows you personally and loves you deeper than the oceans. As followers of God we ought to keep our identity in Him. He is our perfect example of life and will never reject you, even when you reject Him. Our Lord sent His only son to live a perfect life and die upon the cross so that we could have eternal life with our Father. This is not given permission to sin, but a consolation that in sin we are forgiven.    
     Why keep your person in a sinful, Earthly being when God gave us the ever perfect example of life? Why be disappointed in the fall when you can be exuberant in the return? You can be disappointed, however, remember that people are sinful regardless of their status or faith. Love the sinner, not the sin.
     I know that my prayers go out to Tim as he faces his fate and that he realizes the error of his ways. I don't condone what has been done, but I pray that as Lambesis walks in the coming years that he comes back to his former faith and repents of his sinful actions.

Jesus: The Doctor.

     A lot of the time when we think about Jesus, we think about the teachings He gave and, of course, His sacrifice for our life. In the grand scheme, these things do tend to overshadow what I want to talk about today, however, that doesn't mean this is less important. Because we tend to think about Jesus sacrifice, we oversee His healing and miracles.
     While on Earth, Jesus went around to different cities proclaiming His word and healing those who would otherwise go unseen. These healing miracles were just that, miracles. The lepers of the world who would have gone unnoticed except by the priests who would condemn them, the blind who would never see, the demon possessed; Jesus would heal any and all who sought His light.
     The sick were seen as the lowly. They, not always, would go unloved and unnoticed by society, that was, until Jesus came. Even though no one in their right mind would touch the Lepers, Jesus gladly touched them and healed them. Rather than shrug away, He would stretch out His hand and cure the unsightly of their blemishes, making them just as beautiful as the most handsome prince.
     Even Jesus sacrifice was a healing. By sacrificing His own body on that cross, Jesus healed us with His blood, painting us white as the snow. We often see Jesus as a teacher, but He is so much more. Jesus, friend, father, brother, teacher, healer.

Monster - The Almost

The 10 Most Dramatic Works of Movie/Television Music.

     Here today I will be listing out what I believe to be some of the most dramatic/epic/awesome pieces of movie music literature to date. The criterion for it to be ranked is that it must, first off, bring to life the imagination. A piece of movie/television music if played alone (of course we aren't talking about intermittent music here) should bring the imagination to life, it should force us to relive the moments of our favorite characters greatest pains or triumphs. It should stand alone. A great piece of movie music should stand alone in our minds as not only being a great companion to the movie, but something we can hear and know its value as a simple work of art.
     The music below is taken from not only movies, but also television shows that have simply fantastic music put to them. Each is written by an astoundingly talented composer who deserves our gratitude for giving us such a piece of art.

Here we go, the 10 most dramatic and awesome works of movie/television music are:

(Rank. Title - Composer, Movie/Show.)

1. Vale Decem - Murray Gold, Doctor Who Series 4 Finale

2. Time - Hans Zimmer, Inception

3. The Epilogue/Leaving Hogwarts - John Williams/Alexandre Desplat, Harry Potter and the Deathly      Hallows Part 2 and Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone

4. The Road Goes Ever On - Howard Shore, Lord of the Rings Fellowship of the Ring

5. Leia's Theme - John Williams, Star Wars IV A New Hope

6.  Dumbledore's Farewell - Nicholas Hooper, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

7. This is Gallifrey, Our Home, Our Childhood - Murray Gold, Doctor Who

8. Labor of Love - Michael Giacchino, Star Trek

9. Peace - Jeremy Zuckerman, Avatar: The Last Airbender Series Finale

10. Let 'er Buck - James Newton, Hidalgo

Links

1. Vale Decem

2. Time

3. The Epilogue/Leaving Hogwarts

4. The Road Goes Ever On

5. Leia's Theme

6. Dumbledore's Farewell

7. This is Gallifrey, Our Home, Our Childhood

8. Labor of Love

9. Peace

10. Let 'er Buck

The Church as the Body of Christ.

       Traditionally in western, protestant Christian society we usually think of the church as the body of Christ, am I correct? Saying this, what happens when the church, the body of Christ, fulfill the calling? What happens when the church, the body of Christ, bickers among themselves for power? What happens when trivial issues move people from the purpose of the church, the body of Christ?
     Anatomically, when part of our body no longer serves the purpose it is intended to serve, we can consider ourselves disabled, even if it is only slightly so. If not, for the purpose of this argument we can. When a part of our literal, physical bodies do not work, we suffer (if only slightly) in our daily life from it. If we lose a toe, our balance suffers, if we lose a sense, any number of things can happen, if we lose a finger, we struggle to find new ways to hold things we thought easy. We couldn't even comprehend the loss of an entire limb....You understand my point however, that if a working part of our body suddenly stops working or disappears, it throws off the entire body.
     Now, I want you to apply everything you've just read about our physical bodies to the church, the working body of Christ. Let's start small first: a single church, say an Evangelical church who prides themselves on putting the congregation as the head of leadership, having a board only to organize everything for the congregation. If the board loses touch with why they are there and want power, then the congregation becomes frustrated because their rights are being violated. Soon a war has begun. It has become disabled because the leadership does things behind the back of the congregation, and won't give the power back to the congregation. The church now suffers and cannot function as a part of the body because it's purpose is clouded by the trivial arguments.
     The sign of a flourishing body is its growth and learning capabilities, grouped into this category is the churches youth group if there is one, so this is what I will speak on. The ultimate purpose of a youth group is to nurture children of Christ so that they may go out into the world and fulfill their God given purpose in the world with His grace and will. An eventual effect of this is that the kids, while attending the church feed back into the church, spreading Gods energy and youth throughout the church. A flourishing youth group is a sign of a flourishing church. A flourishing youth group can breathe life into even the most stagnating church. If the children of Christ are ready to go out and do his work, they can energize the body and help the church group. Our youth are our future and our present. They will grow up to do great things, but only if we focus on them now and build them into humble servants of Christ.

     Thank you to those of you who made it through this post for listening to my rant. I just really wish to emphasize the importance of building our generations youth and helping them to become healthy servants of Christ.

The Story Within The Music...

     I have always loved the themes and scores that accompany the adventures our favorite characters act out on screen. Being a lover of all things music, and having humble beginnings in classical music, movie/television show scores are just the next step. They are classical music with a plot. They are some of my favorites not only because some of them are simply fantastically written pieces of musical literature that could hold their own in the classical world as being amazing works of art (even without their visual counterparts), but because they conjure up the images of the stories you've come to love.
     Move scores invoke the imagination, taking you along on those journey's that your favorite characters once lived themselves. They have a way of grabbing you by the scruff of your neck and pulling you in, forcing you to relive the worries and whiles again as you once did the very first time you watched that show or movie.

     What I hope to show you now is one of the more imagination invoking works of art I have probably ever heard. The pure emotion the music expresses portrays naught but what is intended; that of grief at a characters untimely departure, yet happiness lived in new beginnings. I beg of you to forgive my expressed emotion in this post for only a piece of a tv show score, but trust me, there is a method to my madness. Below you will find the link to Doctor Who at The Proms 2010 where they play "This is Gallifrey, Our Home, Our Childhood" (The Doctors and The Masters themes as they reflect on Gallifrey) and "Vale Decem" (the theme that haunts us as we watch the 10th Doctors final moments on screen). Please watch, I pray you find the same haunting joy as I do.

So, without further adieu,

Alons-y! and GERONIMO!

Doctor Who at The Proms 2010

I'm Worn...

"Let me see redemption win,

let me know the struggle ends. 

That You can mend a heart

that's frail and torn. 

I wanna know a song can rise

from the ashes of a broken life, 

and all that's dead inside

can be reborn.

'Cause I'm worn..."

     I open with the chorus from Tenth Avenue North's single from The Struggle because it is my plea to God every day I breathe. As a college student now, and an adult, my life has suddenly become much more difficult. Myself, as well as many of my friends around me face now struggles that we've never faced before. In this time of hardship it is very easy to sit back and become frustrated with the cards God has dealt us, relying on Him less and less every day. To be very, very honest, I am worn. I am worn by school. I am worn by relationships and the stress of empathy and sympathy as I worry about my loved ones around me. I am worn physically as I face long days with the outlook for shorter days being a bleak horizon. However, I keep going. Not always by the graces of God though. 

     Lately I have found myself relying less and less on God. Even though my days fill evermore with the stress of being a student and forward thoughts about how to pay for next semesters schooling, I forget about my Savior. I am worn. 

"Let me see redemption win, 

let me know the struggle ends..."

     

     Every day the sins build and I feel the weight of the world as it crushes down upon every person, the stress building until we break one-by-one. But God doesn't want this to happen. He died upon the cross to take our sin upon His own shoulders. He loves each and every one of us so deeply that He was willing to lay down His life so that we may live ours. 

"...You can mend a heart

that's frail and torn."

     God, You can mend my heart. No matter how much I yearn for worldly things. No matter how much heart ache I bare, You heal me. My heart I lay before You, frail and torn, broken and beaten, kicked and trodden upon by those I barely knew and those I loved. Jesus, You lift me when I've fallen. 

"I wanna know a song can rise

from the ashes of a broken life."

     Reborn in You, my sinful life burns. You pluck me out of the ashes, a whimpering baby, and you grow me and You grow within me. Jesus, let me know a song can rise from my lungs to You. Even though my words are tainted with the sin of this world, even though I am scarred by harsh words, let me know a song can rise from my heart to You, Lord. 

"...all that's dead inside

can be reborn."

     Without You, Lord, I am dead. Without You I am nothing. With You I am made new in Your creation. 

"'Cause I'm worn..."

     God, I am worn...We, Your creation, are worn down by this world around us. We are hearts trodden upon by the feet of men. We are lives taken by the hands of people who don't know you. With all I have I raise my hands and my heart to You in humble adoration. I am nothing but a servant. I am worn, but You breathe into me new life. I am worn, but You pick me up. I am worn, but You hold me complete. Jesus, I am worn, but You heal me. 

Amen

Worn - Tenth Avenue North

An Ode to Gerald Lewis

For those you here who don't know me personally, Gerald Lewis was my uncle. He passed away around 4 years ago, back when I was...a more selfish person and didn't realize how much of an impact my uncle had made upon my life. So, when I was required to write a ceremonial speech for Public Speaking it became an obvious choice. I hope to honor the man who influenced my life so greatly here because I didn't when I had the chance...

"Be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon them." -- William Shakespeare

This quote resonates with me today as I think about Gerald Lewis, or Gerry, as we called him, for you see, Gerald Lewis was a great man.

Greatness comes in many forms. Some people are just born great, some achieve greatness through hard work and dedication, and still more simply have greatness thrust upon them whether they wish it or not. I think, though, that there are those few people given greatness by God. You see, though Gerry never had high ambitions for his career, being a humble truck driver, this did not stop him. Gerald Lewis did whatever he could to make his family happy. Family being the most important thing to him. When home he would do whatever tasks my single mother couldn't, he would even send us funds when money at home was short. He was a man you could count on, a man of few yet powerful words. His words would later teach me some of the most important lessons I've ever learned.

It takes a good man to remain faithful, but it takes a great man to remain faithful through pain and misery. Gerry was a man not unaccustomed to pain. Not long after he healed from his shoulder injury, he was given yet more bad news. Gerry had been diagnosed with cancer of the trachea.

It was these few months that Gerald Lewis would teach me the most important lessons I have ever learned.

A sign of greatness is not just to teach others to be great, but to persevere even if they do not want to learn. At the time I was 15 years old and a sophomore in high school. It was a good year in my life. I had it all figured out. No more struggles. I was just gonna coast on, become a famous musician, and...well, happily ever after. But Gerry knew otherwise. At the time I wasn't the easiest person to be around. I was a cocky jerk at school and at home I was an arrogant...(enter derogatory term here)...but he continued to teach me, even if I tried to ignore him. Even if he didn't realize it.

Even if he didn't realize it, Gerry taught me through everything he did. Love your family. Gerry had given everything he had to his family; his whole life. Love your God. Shortly before Gerry's death he began attending a church near our home in Lakebay, Washington: Lakebay Community Church. A couple of his friends around the area had been going there and Gerry decided to join. In these short months I would watch him delve deeper and deeper into a faith I hardly knew existed. At the time I thought it ridiculous. Why have faith and serve a God we cannot see? There are much more pressing things. But now...now I see him as an inspiration. Gerald Lewis grew in his faith through this last and hardest trial. This was possibly the most important lesson he could teach me. No matter the circumstance, no matter how difficult the trial, no matter how hard the world weighs upon your shoulders, always trust in God. I never saw Gerry as happy and at peace as he was in the months leading to his death. It takes a great man to be at peace with death on the horizon.

Gerald Lewis passed away October 20th, 2009. The night before his death he looked at my grandma and said, "I'm leaving tomorrow." Though she thought he meant the hospital, I believe he knew. I know it sounds farfetched, but I believe God told him when he was going to pass and how much time he had left so he might teach those of us close to him these crucial lessons.

A man of many lessons, Gerald Lewis was not always the most talkative person, but his words held special meaning to those around him. A father figure to myself and a friend and family-man to everyone else, he will always and forever be one of the greatest men I have met in my life.

Thank you.

Ok, it's up to you.

    Ok guys, I'm posing a suggestion to you guys, and please be honest. A couple days ago I decided I was going to walk up to Target to pick up some of my medications...you know, rather than take the bus or bike or...whatever. Anyway, I was walking over the I-205 overpass at dusk and I thought to myself, "this would be a fantastic place for a video blog."
     So, I'm putting it up to you guys, what do you think? To those of you guys who enjoy reading what I write here, would you enjoy a video just as much?

     PLEASE, PLEASE comment your answers!!! Thanks!

An Old Message.

     Hey guys, I know it's been awhile since I've written anything, and I'm deeply sorry to those who follow avidly. I've been fairly busy at school this semester and have had little time to sit down and write. Today I would like to talk about a message I'm sure I've mentioned before, however, it is one that is nevertheless important to remember: we must think outside of the box.
     As Christians, we often find ourselves content in daily ritual. Wake up, go to school/work, come home, eat, sleep, repeat. On weekends we "mix it up" by attending church. Is this good though? Yes, getting plugged into a church is very good. By plugging into a church we are able to build ourselves up as Christians by feeding into a family of Christ, essentially extending our family in God. We build relationships under Gods roof and allow ourselves Gods grace through people. This being said, should we allow ourselves to sit idly in ritualistic living?
     Should we allow ourselves to become content in our daily lives? I think not. Don't get me wrong, I love the norm as much as the next guy, but are we called to be content? In the gospel, Jesus gives us a commission, a great commission to go out into the world and make disciples in his name; does that sound like a command to stay within the box? Jesus prevailed in obliterating the norms in which his twelve disciples lived by simply asking them to follow. Everything they thought possible was turned upside-down by Jesus as he taught them the message of God.
     We are called to emulate Jesus through our actions, I am here to say that I don't think this should be restricted to extending mercy to others. I'm not telling you to stop extending grace as Jesus did, only to think farther outside of the box. God does not work within our realm of understanding, so why should we continue to think within a box that attempts to limit our God? Be imaginative. Be spontaneous in the Lord. Follow God wherever He may take you, even if you don't think you ought to go to said place. As I previously said, God does not work within our understanding, so how can we continue to believe that we are more right than He? How can we possibly know the outcome when we can't even understand the creator?
     Men and women, boys and girls, I tell you now as Jesus told his disciples over two thousand years ago, go into the world and make disciples. Go into the world and follow God, follow His word, for only then will you feel pure, uninterrupted joy. Be creative, imagine the unimaginable, FOLLOW GOD ANYWHERE! GO!

Lion Sightings: bringing the gospel to the people of Portland.

Our Mission:
     The church is simply a gathering of two or more people in the name of God. Our hope is to build a roaming church of Portlanders who strive to worship God in joyful exuberance. Our desire is not to take from those churches already established in Portland, but rather to bring the church to the people. We wish naught but to show the loving joy of Christ through music and words.
     Christ didn't just call us, he commissioned us to go out into the world and make disciples in His holy name. That is our ultimate goal. We hope to excite the name of God in people and feed them the word of the Lord as He feeds us.
     Our prayer is for God to flow through our music. We pray that people feel the ultimate heart of worship and that that sparks a fire within them that drives a curiosity to find Christ. Worship is not something to be experienced by only those who find the church, but should also be heard and felt by those to maybe do not know Christ. Our heart is to let the heart behind worship be seen upon our shoulders as we lay down our follies and worries to the Savior and share His heart with the people of Portland. 

     The heart behind Lion Sightings is to literally bring the church to the people rather than relying on the people to go to the church. The primary medium of Lion Sightings mission will be music, but we also need help with prayer and general evangelism ministry. It's a simple idea with large ramifications. The idea is for a group of musicians and a prayer group to go into downtown Portland and "stir things up" by (hopefully) bringing about a curiosity in people to know who Christ is and eventually bring lives to him.
     We hope to stir a God driven revival in Portland through this and simply get people interested in who Jesus was and is. This broken city needs the love of Christ and that is all we hope to show them. 

THANKS GUYS! 

Nerf Tag

And so it begins...

My Zombie Apocalypse.

     As I awoke today, I found first that my desk lamp wouldn't turn on. My only thought was that maybe the bulb simply burnt out and that I should replace it. I still wanted light in my room however, so I moved over to the room lights to turn them on. Upon flicking the switches I found that the lights would not turn on. That is when I noticed that I could not see the hallway lights beneath my door as per usual. I opened the door. What confronted me was the velvet darkness of the hallway and the power outage I had yet to find out about.
     I had only one thought in my angst before returning to a normal mind, "CRAP! The zombie apocalypse happened and no one woke me up!!! Frick..."

My 2012!

Hey guys!

     Sorry this is a bit late, but I just wanted to thank you all for the great year I've had personally and for making this blog a success! Thank you all and may Christ be with you!  

P.S. This just a little, cheesy video I made to sum up the year. I hope you like it! 

My 2012 - Who Needs Air (The Classic Crime)

I've Crossed the Danger Line.

      For those of you who don't know, I'm a musician and for about a year now I've been writing music. While writing lyrics lately I've noticed an ongoing theme: the lies and lust of the world; how nothing here is real. When I realized this theme--being used to simply writing down lines as they come to me-- it troubled me, why would I be writing about such a depressing theme?
     These thoughts plagued me for awhile until I realized that I've been missing something--or should I say someone--else for awhile as well. You see, I've been home on break from school, and in my time here I've been for the most part alone aside from my grandma and brother. I've been away from the God filled atmosphere that has become my home at Multnomah, left to fend for my own, in a matter of speaking.
     Now, don't get me wrong, I am not saying that my home is not a God filled environment, or that God is somehow less present here than at school. What I'm saying is that over the last few months I've gotten used to being in a place where God is mentioned in nearly every conversation, a place where the purpose is to live and learn in a God driven environment. So, coming home I've been forced to rely on my own troubled devices to stay with God, no longer being told by teachers to read my bible.
     Before God I was a distraught creation, always fighting with people, and getting into things I shouldn't. Though, when I found God these things either lessened or went away completely. As my relationship has grown with Christ, I've required more and more of Him to go on day by day. Needless to say, I've become to reliant on others to continue my growth in Christ; I've crossed the danger line.
     This is an area you never want to enter. Yes, if you are being mentored or discipled by someone, some reliance is to be expected, but it should never interrupt your life with Jesus away from that person.  WARNING! This is not an article telling you to become self-reliant in your spiritual growth! This is, however, a post telling you to become reliant on the Savior for your growth. Christ wants to stay near you, and He will run the worlds length to catch you before you fall. You know what this takes, right? Prayer. No matter the circumstance, if you pray, God will answer for He answers all prayers. If you keep contact with Christ, you will feel a passion within you grow white hot until you can't survive unless you drink in His holy word.
     So, if you leave here with anything, please leave with this: Jesus loves you more than all worldly objects. His love for you is unending and unknowable. He will sprint, full-tilt all 24,901 miles (or 40,075 km if you're reading outside of the US) just to catch you before you fall. All you have to do is pray and He'll be by your side.