21

It's here. I am officially 21.

It's ok, you can celebrate. :)

But really. 21. I was thinking about that the other day, and was wondering what I had to show for 21 years of life. What was the number 1 thing I have learned at my ripe old age of 21?

I tried really hard to narrow it down to one thing. I tried hard, but to no avail. Life has a thrown too many lessons hand tailored by God in my direction for me to narrow it down to just one. 

The first lesson, is rather obvious, but profound. 

God is good. 

And yes, apparently it took me 21 years to really find that out. :) 

Through all my trials, biffs, stumblings, scrapes and spiritual abrasions, God has never let me go hungry, never left me in a ditch, never said 'fooey on this kid' and hucked me out for the trash pickup. He has always been there, always led me ( when I would actually listen...... ) always been handling my life so I never need worry, never need fear, despite the fact that I usually did anyway. 

One of the verses that has been the most comfort to me recently is Philippians 1:6 -

Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;

Paraphrased down to 'God will finish what he has started' for quick and easy memory and reminders. 

God will finish what he has started. I cling to that promise, knowing that Gods promises are the only thing I can cling to in life, and that he will finish sanctifying me - some day. 

The second thing I learned is a bit original. Well, actually it isn't really original at all, but I compiled the truth of it into an original one-liner, that I am very fond of. 

We have all seen those one liner quotes from various famous or so-called smart people through time. Well, someday, I hope this quote goes that viral. It might do the world some good. 

"Those who are the most surprised at your sins and your sin nature, are the least in touch with their own." 

There it is. It's even in quotes - quoting me. :) So there, my first official quote. If I am to be remembered saying anything, I hope this line appears in there somewhere.

 The truth behind it is as old as old, but as God has revealed this truth me to recently, I kinda compiled it down to a simple phrase for easy memory. I like simple and catchy one-liners that convey heaps of truth, because I find them the easiest to remember in a tight spot. 

But seriously. Those who get the most surprised, and even offended, insulted, and upset, when they find out how much of a sinner you really are, how black your heart really is, how deep the stain of sin has really sink in your life, are the ones who are the most oblivious, or hard hearted towards their own sin-encrusted souls. 

I have a friend in the web - she probably will read this and know I am talking about her - who went through some rough times recently. On being convicted by her sin, and confessing it at large on have web, she didn't receive love, compassion, and friendly and god-centered help from friends coming alongside and pointing her in the right direction, rejoicing with her in the freedom of her release from her sins. 

She was hated. She was spurned. She was turned away by some of her friends, because they couldn't believe how 'bad' she really was. 

She did receive comfort from others, and even help and prayer, but still, she was rejected for merely being honest. 

Folks, I am sorry to say, but those people have more sin down deep than she does, and what's worse, they are blind to it, by their own choice. 

The people who are really in touch with their own soul, really convicted by God as to the wickedness of their own, the ones who are starting to realize, and experience the far reaching effects their sin nature has on every aspect of their life, are not surprised when they find their friends in the same boat. They know their own depravity, and therefore understands and rejoices when someone else finds themselves in similar waters. 

I struggle so much with my own lack of faith, doubt, pride, anger, lust, greed, lack of self control, that sometimes I wonder if I am the only one with such problems. Of course I know others do, but when nobody talks, nobody knows.   

I will summarize the point with a resolution, in hopes of helping being the solution to the problem - To be more open. A resolution to be more honest as to how I really am. If people are having a hard time being open as about their problems, then I guess I will try to do my part to make it easier, and tell more people how I really am doing.  

Which lately, hasn't been so hot. 

I find myself struggling so hard with doing what I know I should be doing. My inner self is surprisingly selfish and hostile to everything that gets in the way of what I want to do. I honestly have been rather surprised at my own depravity. 

I am finding out that I am a rebel. I die-hard rebel, and not just one in grey wool - one in black, or at least, with a black heart. 

And since I was surprised, I guess that means I guess I didn't understand my own sin nature, which then explains why I was surprised, because I didn't understand....

Sorry, gets a bit circular there. 

But anyway, It has become more and more clear to me that the only thing good in me is Christ. 

Period. Flat out. No joke. I guess Paul wasn't kidding. 

I thought I was a pretty good dude. You know, smart, homeschooled, didn't shoot people, was pretty nice, had lots of friends, could shoot pretty straight, hunt, fish better than most in my groups, big muscles, yada yada yada. 

Your mind can tell you big and mighty things when it is trying to avoid the realization of your own real lost-ness and depravity.  

But then of course, God doesn't leave you there. Thankfully. Breaks them lies. Reveals cold hard truth.

Then starts building.  

He is teaching me to honor him in my heart, and not just the outside. Submitting don't come natural to me. 

Yes Mullins fans, I learned that quote from him. :) 

   

So my life is one solid battle right now, with moments of victory and moments of defeat, often not too far apart. Praying, fighting, falling, failing. 

And getting back up again. 

For a Righteous man may fall seven times, and rise again, 

Proverbs 24:16  

So all of you out there who think I am a little nuts - I am. Lately my biggest Public-Enemy-#1 has been myself. 

But I am bound and determined, I will go down. 

He must increase, I must decrease. 

God will finish what he has started.  

And it certainly wont be by 22. : )

The Top Ten Myths About Country Life - Debunked

Ok, this post has been floating about in my mind now for a while, and at last, I am bringing it down to earth and to the cybernook I call my blog.

So, I have found there is a lot of hype about the country life, and whether you know it or not, a lot you believe about living in the country probably isn't true - unless of course you already live there, in which case you should relate to this post marvelously.

Ready for them? I wish I could arrange these in 10 - 1 order, but I cant decide in which order they should go. I will however save the biggest myth for the last - nice little climax. :)

So here we go -The Top Ten myths about the Country.

#10 -  Everybody is nice and polite in the country
Ha, I so wish this was true, but no, to do that, we would have to eliminate all people - which would make country living rather hard wouldn't it?
I have heard of, and met, my share of country jerks, and while they might not be in the same quantities as un the city, oh boy do they exist.

#9 - Everybody in the country listens to country music.
This is one is debatable as to whether or not it is preferable, but no, certainly not true. I have heard a good share of everything else out in my neck of the woods.
Granted, I would say country music is preferred out here, but is not unanimous across the board.

#8 - Everybody in the country dun be dumb rednecks.
Ok, just because you know me doesn't mean you can judge the rest of us that way. :D
But really, my neighbor, plus one guy I know pretty well up the road, are engineers at Boeing. Seriously. They have some serious smarts up there, and the country is littered with people who are far brighter than you ever dreamed a pair of simple jeans and t-shirt could hold.

Speaking of which .....

#7 - Everybody in the country wears jeans, or overalls.
I have seen a wide variety of clothes out here, from jeans, to overalls, to coveralls, to shorts, shorts so short you cant even call them shorts anymore, Khakis, skinny jeans, jeans with so many holes there is more holes than jeans, dress pants, yeah. It's all here. Jeans certainly have center stage, but again, is not unanimous.

#6 -  Everybody in the country has cows and chickens at the very least.
Dead wrong. Me and my neighbor are the only ones on our street that has chickens. Cows appear about once every two blocks. You would not believe the amount of people who move out here just to get some land and make it look nice, then just sit at it and stare at it. Literally. There are tons of people out my way who have no animals besides dogs, and maybe a stray barn cat or two.

#5 - Goats are these lovely quiet animals that stand still to be milked, and sheep are docile and follow the shepherd quietly wherever he goes.

Let me inform you.

When Christ compared Christians to sheep, that wasn't exactly a compliment. Sheep are scatterbrained, dumb, do whatever everybody else is doing, even if it is dumber than what they are presently doing, are obsessed with food, and can get so scared they will literally kill themselves.

Sound familiar?

Oh, and when he compared the unsaved to goats - Ha - depending on the goat, that could be a flat out insult. Of course Christ wasn't insulting people - goats are actually a very god word picture of unsaved people - It's just that goats in real life are so downright .... (thinking of nice word...) .... Evil.

I have heard stories of nice, quiet, behaving goats, kinda like all those rumors you hear about dragons in Antarctica.



And yes, they will eat anything.

Goats will intentionally look for ways to do what you know you don't want them to do, and you can see them calculating in their minds how much longer they can pull off their mischief until you get to them.

I plain out don't like goats, and sheep are ok - for their purpose.

The way I see it, there is a reason God said sheep are going to Heaven, and goats are going to Hell.

Just saying.  



#4 - We live on Ham, steak, mashed potatoes, fried chicken, and home-baked pies.
Oh Golly I wish. I would be one happy dude - imagine all that meat..... Oh yeah, I could do that - if I was flat out rich.

#3 - We spend the evenings sitting on the front porch and watch the sunset.
Like, never.
We are usually busy feeding animals at that time - everyday. Silly things need feeding regularly.
Some of us don't even have a front porch. We do, and it even has a swing in it, but we hardly ever get to use it. :)

#2 - We all have rocking chairs on the front porch.
Literally, the last time I saw a legit rocking chair was at Cracker Barrel.  Nuff Said.

Ready for the  #1 Myth about the country life? This might surprise you.

ROOSTERS DON'T CROW AT THE SUNRISE.

They just don't. Know why?

Because they crow ALL. THE. TIME.  - I heard one crow at 3:00 A.M once. They crow in the morning. They crow in the evening. They crow anytime in-between they feel like it. They just crow.

Honestly, I really have no idea where this one came from, because it is so far out there, it just simply had to be nearly made up out of someones head. Someone woke up, heard the rooster crow, and just randomly decided that the rooster had to be crowing at the sun, because he obviously wasn't crowing at the llama.

Or something like that...


So there they are! All ten of them, debunked. Country like just ain't what it's all chalked up to be.

Got any other country myths that your backwoods life has debunked? I would love to hear them!

Unsafe

From time to time for sheer amusements sake and for just 'keeping tabs on the culture', I watch videos on youtube where people argue about gun control. The majority I see are Piers Morgan vs. _____, and most of them follow the same basic blueprint.

 

Anti-gunner says world would be safer if nobody only law enforcement had guns, or make guns ridiculously hard to get a hold of. Gun advocate throws in a few statistics about how things are safer with guns, and proceeds to get adamant about their guns and their constitutional rights, ending in a stereo-typical 'you can have my guns one round at a time' statement. 

Piers rightly states that most gun advocates that get on that type of show all do that, with little variation. He appears to be dead right. 

Of course, the gun advocates are usually right in their analysis, when it comes to statistics, motivations, etc., but  over and over again, it seems to me that they miss the real mark. There is a real point, way deep down past the layers of anti-gunners arguments, rules, and TV talk shows. 

The real nugget? The real deal behind guns, drugs, teen drivers, and cattle ranchers?

They (Fill in that Pronoun with your party of choice) think they can make the world safe. They think that with all their rules, regulations, and lack of freedom, keeping the law-abiding citizen tacked to his chair in an attempt to pin the criminal, that somehow, someway, the world will be safe.     

Safe.

Oh the word, they roll it around in their mouth in sheer joy at it's sound. They harp on it daily, as a matter of fact. Gun control is worth it - stiffer driving laws are worth it - higher taxes for 'better' schools are worth it - if they can only keep one person safe. 

I have been thinking on this, and I want to see if I can put this question, this issue, to rest in one fell swoop, because the answer is not what it may at first appear.  

Fear is a deadly thing, and to be honest, it drives most people. Fear of looking bad in front of their friends. Fear of losing money in the stock market. Fear of being hurt. Fear of pain. Fear of insignificance. Fear of insecurity. Fear of fear itself. 

In this case, fear of un-safety. ( I just found out that isn't a word..... oh well.)

In the New Captain America (review coming sometime.... I hope..) there is a stunning line.

Nick Fury has just finished telling Cap how they are about to launch their next step in anti-terrorism - basically to kill anyone who might even be the tiniest possibility of a terrorist with massive souped-up drones. 

Cap: I thought the punishment came after the crime?

Nick: Here at Shield we take the world as it is, not as we like it to be.

Cap: By holding a gun to everybody's head and calling it freedom.   

Freedom is the other side of the coin. 

Freedom is never safe. Total safety is never free. Think about it. If you have the freedom to cut yourself if you pick up that knife sitting next to you, there is a slight risk in that freedom. You just might be dumb and cut yourself. If, however, that knife is removed, technically you no longer have the freedom to hurt yourself with that knife, and again, technically the risk is gone. You are safe now, right? 

The world is scared stiff of getting hurt and getting rubbed wrong, so of course the way to make everybody safe is to make sure that no-one is free. 

The bad guys in Cap 2 ( no spoilers out there for those who haven't yet seen it ) say in the movie that the world can't be trusted with its own freedom - they have to take it away to make it safe. 

Sure, freedom is scary. It means someone might use their freedom to do you harm. They might use their freedom to do something you don't like. The list goes on of things that they could do with their freedom that are potentially harmful, and the quick and obvious solution is to just take away all freedom - far, far safer that way. 

The militia, or even worse, the rabble minded public at large, might decide to storm the capital if capitol hill does something they decide is dumb, therefore lets just make things much safer and remove all public guns. Oh yes, that's better. Safe....

All you gun-toters and conservatives out there, pause just a second though. Don't get yourself too saddled up on your high-horse there. You ain't off the hook either.  

Christ commands us to love. Love unconditionally as a matter of fact, and unconditional love is unsafe. 

It's hard, admit it. 

Ladies, if you do the right thing and don't snap back when your husband is rude to you and run roughshod and (gasp!) unloving over your life, and love him back and serve him, it means he still has the potential to keep on doing it. And that hurts. Are you going to keep loving him? Serving him? 

Guys, when she is disrespecting you, not honoring you, loving her when she is being nasty and a bit of a jerk is not second nature. Being loving keeps you open to more hurt, more pain. 

It's so much easier to take away their freedom to hurt you, by merely walling yourself up, and being unloving back.    

So much safer. 

And that is ultimately why tyranny is wrong - it is the ultimate version of distrust and lack of love. One man in a big chair thinks that to keep himself and his rule safe and happy, he must keep the entire nation under his heavy and blood stained thumb, because freedom is far, far to dangerous. Any and all freedom is a threat to him, so it must all go. Every last bit of freedom.

But Christ knew this, and still left those around him free. Free to hurt him, free to kill him - and kept loving them even when they did. 

And he had total freedom to wall them all off, blast them all to smithereens, and bring the world back down to serene safety. 

Oh that word is starting to bug me...... maybe that is why I like guns without safety's.... That thought literally just came through my mind. Odd.    

Anyway, he didn't do any of that. He used his freedom to love them back, and ultimately, that freedom and love, is what makes us free today, and what makes us love him today. 

Odd isn't it? Without freedom, we cant love. If God never gave us freedom to hate him, we would never actually have the choice to love him. To make the conscious choice one way, there has to be the possibility, and the freedom, of turning the opposite way. 

And that is one of the reasons why I think we should have no other laws besides the biblical laws, because then, and only then, are we being totally loving to our neighbor. I don't believe we should have stupid laws that try to keep ourselves safe from other peoples stupidity. 

Like age limits on driving and owning guns. Really?  Just have the laws in place to punish them if they actually do do something biblically worthy of punishment from the state. Like killing somebody. 

But hey, whatcha know, the Bible has laws on how to deal with that. 

Lets not have anymore of these laws that make the cops come out and play sandbox mediator when we have a fender bender, so nobody can ever be taken advantage of by a jerk who insists it was your fault he hit your bumper, and takes off down the road, leaving you having to now repair your car. 

It's just a big-fat case of not really loving your neighbor. 

But lets be a little more down home shall we?

Let's no longer wall everybody off who is hurting us, be unloving, because that is the easiest way to keep us and our emotions safe. 

Lets instead be open - be loving - be ready to be hurt, be ready to be taken advantage of, be ready for humiliation, be content with things being 'unsafe',  because then, and only then, are we really, truly, loving. 

       

Slice of Heaven - Glimpse of God

Ok, guys, sorry it has been a while. Lots of stuff  - as usual - happening all over the place.
But, I came down with something, giving me some time to finally blog. I have had so many different blog ideas lately, ranging from finally posting reviews on Thor 2 and the second Hobbit, to doing a completely random post on the top ten myths about farm life and country living, and other things that pop into my head as I go through my daily jaunts.

This particular topic has been in the back of my mind for a while now, longer than most other topics.

It all got started with a quote from C.S. Lewis, in the last Chronicles of Narnia book.

 

"Listen, Peter. When Aslan said you could never go back to Narnia, he meant the Narnia you were thinking of. But that was not the real Narnia. That had a beginning and an end. It was only a shadow or a copy of the real Narnia which has always been here and will always be here: just our old world, England and all, is only a shadow or copy of something in Aslan's real world."

The quote goes on longer than that, but you get the general gist. It goes on to compare the old Narnia and the new Narnia to looking in a mirror and seeing a landscape behind you. Like, but not quite the same.

Two thoughts emerged from this quote. One is pure speculation, the other, might have a little more validity.

First thought: is our heavens and earth right now, a mere shadow and glimpse of the new heavens and new earth?

Do we like stunning scenery, high mountains, blue oceans, green pastures, white waterfalls, and thick forests, because somehow, someway, they are a glimpse of heaven?

  

 

As an outdoorsy, I get a good view of the whopping world that is out there that God has made  - 

But just imagine the new heavens and the new earth. 

Like I said, that is all merely speculation. it could be a legitimate speculation, but a speculation none-the-less.

The second thought, I think has a little more validity, and the more I think about it, the more it makes sense. 

How much of what we like about life, whether it be music, outdoors, sewing, or epic adventures, do we like them because somehow, without even realizing it, we like them because they somehow reflect the nature and personality of God?

This isn't a reprimand along the lines of 'liking things that only somehow are overtly reminiscent of God', this is meant to pose a possible reason why we enjoy life, because it points back to it's origin.   

Maybe we like the the tiny flowers on the side of the path, because somehow, they are a glimpse of  God. A glimpse of how even the tiny details, or the smallest obedience matters so much to him.   

Or how about the night sky? Maybe that is an insight to his vast creativity. 

 

Or maybe the reason we appreciate beauty in the first place is because God in himself is beautiful. 

We like people who are personable and can relate, because we know that God is personal, and relate-able. 

Or how about music?

(warning - all pieces reference here are some my personal favorites, so if you think there is a slight bias....you might be right)  

Maybe we like pieces like this, because we know God has a kind, soft heart towards those who are his. 

Or maybe we like sad pieces because Jesus himself wept at a friends death. 

And epic music - oh boy - maybe we like it because God has an epic plan for our life, if we merely obey him. 

And maybe we like majestic music, because it is a taste of what we will hear in heaven praising God. 

Maybe we like pieces that remind us of the memories and joys of home, because we know that God has made the home and family one of the key elements to his plan. 

All of you non - LOTR fans, just ignore the fact that this music is from there and enjoy the piece. You'll be glad you did. : ) 

Maybe, just maybe those are a tiny insight as to the nature of God. Just maybe. : )

I think there has to be something within mankind that we don't realize, that is naturally drawn to the things that reflect and mirror the nature and characteristics of God, despite the fact that they try to deny his existence. 

I think he gives us those things as extra reminders, as pointers, to remind us of him. 

But that is my theory, and no more than that. 

What things about the world and life remind you of the character of God?

David Ronsick Fine Art

Well folks, It's official.

Like, really official.

A while back I asked for ideas on what my art business should be called - cause I was nowhere near any good ideas.  : )

Desert Rat hit gold with 'Mighty Fine Art'. I had to admit, it had a ring. A *nice* ring. And I was all gung-ho to do it too - except some little sneak somewhere in the world snuck up a site with that very name, no doubt minute before I tried - the little.....

Well, I'll try to be nice. : ) I didn't feel to strongly convinced that his artistic endeavors were *mighty*, but it certainly was.....unique. I will give him that.

So, after much counseling with titles battering about in my head, I settled on a slightly more simple and non-original title.

~ David Ronsick Fine Art ~

It also has a nice ring - A nice professional sound, like I'm somebody important or something. : ) It took me a while, but I've learned to like it.

Sorry Desert Rat, I tried.

So! Months of website stuff later, it's legit.

So go ahead - click on that 'Fine Art' button up top. Do it several times if you like - break it in for me.

And yes, those pictures are for sale. I'm officially in the art business, and officially open for custom drawings. All the info needed should be there on the site, so browse away and enjoy!

Thank God for getting me here, and here's praying for what he will do next.  

Ready to be a Mom?

So you gals out there all want to be moms some day - you up for the challenge? : D

Try not to die laughing - I nearly did. My parents gave up trying to understand me reading it to them.

Long live mothers! 

.... and look cheerful. :) 

Principle

There is a a movie I enjoy - The Patriot as a matter of fact - that has a stunning line.

Benjamin Martin - Mel Gibson - is asked why he is not willing to fight nor vote to send other people to fight against the British. He says that he has a family to look after, and he has to take care of them. The man questioning him throws in a nailer.

"Mr. Martin, I thought you were a man of principle."

Mr. Martin swallows, and says 

"Apparently I don't have the luxury of principle,"

and sits back down.  

The luxury of principle - as if we can only stick to principle when it's sunny and balmy, and then eventually real life sets in and we have to enter the real world and compromise. 

I ran into that the other day. I had my first job interview, and had high hopes. Trying to get a good paying job so I can start towards getting a family going. I was qualified for the job, and could do well at it. 

I was offered an ultimatum - work on Sundays - or no job. I told him my stance - I was a Christian, and Sundays were important. I'll work long hours on any other day of the week - but I want Sundays for Church. He understood, but he had a business to run.

The luxury of principle - did I have it?

I was told that the line of work I was applying for was retail - with retail, the busiest days of the week are weekends - Sunday especially. If I was to work there, they needed me to come in when they needed me. After all, it wouldn't be fair to give me all Sundays off and none to the next guy. We have a business to run here, and we need you to be flexible on days. 

So I was told, as I sat in the managers office and pondered my next move.

Wow, that makes it sound more like a chess game doesn't it? 

Anyhow, I got a few days to think it over, and left in a pretty sobered mood. 

This post isn't meant to argue the point of whether or not you should work on Sundays - or whether or not the Sabbath is Saturday, should we move Church to Saturday, is Sunday a pagan thing, and all those interesting and time consuming topics. 

This is a post about what you believe in.

Basically, the situation came down to this - what you believe, or a job. Pick one, but they don't come together in these four walls. 

So, what do I do? I have lots of good sounding arguments both ways. One way, I will honor the Sabbath, attend the gathering of the saints, and stick to my (maybe naive) principle. The other way, I use my liberty on the Sabbath principle, and do the manly and Christian thing and start getting the preparations ready for marriage, provide for a family and such. 

Which side of the fence do I fall on? Either way I land has some rocks that won't feel so pretty.

But lets step back and look at this for a minute from a larger perspective. In reality, this is a tiny thing - it's just a job - this isn't life or death, food or famine situation. I don't have mouths to feed, or bills I can't pay. 

So what do I do with my conviction on Sundays? Does principle or practicality win the day? 

The situation boils down to a bigger issue than just jobs and Sundays though. It goes all the way back to something way bigger with way more potential. 

Your Character. 

There are two types of convictions. There is preference, and there is belief. Preference is my opinion of facial hair, jeans, makeup and music. I have opinions, backed with principle and a few verses here and there (and a few cases of sheer dogged determination...). 

Then there is belief. Stuff like Biblical patriarchy, purity before marriage, self defense, and yes, Church. 

Fudging on preference as the case may need, can sometimes be wisdom - sometimes not.  

Fudging on principle is downright deadly. 

Shaving isn't a sin - I don't like it but it isn't a sin. I could (God forbid.....) fudge on that. I believe makeup is OK on girls, and won't get all bent out of shape if someone says they think it is wrong. I think they are wrong, but hey, liberty is the right to be wrong...

Belief is something that we can never fudge on - ever. It's one of those things that is like a crack in a windshield - once it's there, you know it will grow, and grow, and grow, and grow.

Then shatter.

If you were willing to fudge on Sundays - which for the sake of argument, lets just call in the preference side, since we know God had given some liberty there in the NT -  what difference does it make? Really? What's the big deal?

I was even probably going to get afternoon hours, so I could get to stay through most of church, then just bug out for the last tiny bit. Did it really matter?

I decided it did.      

    

  

If I decided to compromise on my beliefs here, where would I be willing to compromise next?  If I was willing to fudge on the small beliefs, what would stop me from fudging on the big ones?  It was church this time - what if it was modesty the next time? What if was drinking the time after?

And what if it was my purity at stake the time after that? Would I have compromised so far already that I would have no ounce of moral spinal-cord left?

Once you start compromising, it is a slippery slide downwards towards mediocrity and spinelessness.
The windshield of your life will crack further and further till it finally shatters all over you and your loved ones, leaving everything a wreck.

People all over say to get along in the world - politics especially - people - those rigid legalistic Christians especially - need to learn to compromise. They say only when we set aside our personal beliefs and such and meet halfway, can we ever find a happy medium.

I say never on my watch.

I called the manager back yesterday, and told him thanks for all his time, but I would keep looking.

Thank God, I decided to stand on the little things. I don't regret it one bit, and will keep looking for jobs, knowing that God will provide when I do my best to honor him.

So this is a man/woman up post. Stand on your conviction, no matter the consequences, or no matter who doesn't stand with you. After all, you can't stand out if you fit in.

I have a line on the end of my emails, paraphrased from General Stonewall Jackson.

"Duty is ours - Consequences are God's"

2013 in Review

I was sitting here doing my thing, when it hit me.

Its the end of the year. One whole year has gone by. Hot Dog.

So of course, I am bound to do a year in review. Gee, where to begin.

Every year I say I learned so much, that I begin to wonder if I learned anything in the previous year by comparison. It just keeps growing year after year, and I keep learning, so I am beginning to wonder if either there is so much more to learn than I ever dreamed possible, or if I am so stupid that I hardly ever learned anything in the years previous.

Let's hope it's option A....

So, the year. It's fun to look back through the posts I put up through the year, seeing my thoughts play out as events happened to spark ideas for blog posts.

This year had a milestone moment for me, that changed my life radically, and I will never be the same. I hope you all have seen the change, but I'll get to that in a minute. :)

Nothing much interesting happened in January.  I did three posts, one about changing the world with the small things in life, one about how Christians are losing their salt and light, and a video from Fox News about gun control. Nothing too exciting.

In February was our annual Men and Boys Campout, and I got this stunning shot on a hike we went on as the sun was going down.

Epicness

In February I also got my compound bow, and have been avidly archer-ing away ever since. I did a couple movie reviews, a video post, and officially hit my 100 post mark. Nice little stepping stone. 

In March, things kicked off with our annual Men's Prayer advance, where I shot my first Rattlesnake, and my good friend nearly got lost in the desert. My friend survived the experience. The Rattlesnake - not so much. 

Noah shot one, mine is the one on bottom

Right after, all the guys in my family and an entire other family went to a handgun training course outside of Las Vegas. Two days of bang and bullets, complete with firing my first full-auto UZI. Talk about fun. 

The only thing I blogged about was a post about the two trips. But it was in between those two trips, the change of a lifetime began. 

I didn't realize it until later in the year, but it started here, and I will get to that in a minute. : )

In April, nothing of note happened, except that I wrote a post about what I like about girls. That post has hit the mark of 248 views, 5 +'s and 28 comments - so far my most popular and often viewed post. It happens to be one of my favorite posts, so I am glad everybody took to it so well. : D 

In May, things came to a head in my spiritual life, and I made a turn around a spiritual corner that has left me changed forever. 

I found me. 

Up until this year, I had no idea who I was - who the real me really was, way deep down where nobody saw. I knew what I wanted to be, I knew what I wasn't, but I didn't know what I was. And that journey, that realization, that God led me down quietly and slowly so as not to overwhelm me in one fell blow, changed me forever. 

I did a post on the real me, which was a huge milestone for my spiritual walk, but the best part was what was happening in my heart. I was changing, realizing my real weakness, learning to be content with who I was, not trying to change myself to who I wanted to be, and the best part, since I learned how sensitive I was, I learned (more like, still learning) how to be sensitive, kind, and loving to others - because I knew what it felt like to be on the other end of insensitivity, unkindness, and unlovingness (is that a word?.....)

I hope you have seen a change in me since then, because that section of time in my life, literally, was the most important so far. Everything in my life led to that point, and wow, Thank God he showed it to me. 

Whoops, that went a bit long. Moving on....

I also had my senior Photo Shoot, and did random crazy things like AZ surfing as the temperature climbed far to high for my comfort.  

Three surfers with their horses that they trained

Class of 2013

  

In June, I actually graduated, which was  -  to put it mildly - nice. 15 years of schooling under my belt, a gun on my hip, and ready to take on the great big world - or so it felt at the time. : )

But I also did another momentous post, on not only who I was, but how I got to who I was, through my past, my hurt, my pain, and my life - all shaping me to who I am today. After I figured out who I was, it was only a matter of connecting the dots to my life to figure out how I got there. 

Let me tell you, in all honesty and seriousness - if you have never been at that point where you ground yourself to reality - find out who you really are and why you really are, you are probably adrift in the world and in your heart. I know I was, and that is a miserable and lonely place to be. That time in my life, all heading in that post, was, without a doubt besides my actual conversion, the most important time in my life. 

Those two posts, the ones about me and how I got there, are my favorite posts. : ) Where I open wide to all the world who I am, and pray for mercy from God to accept that and go on with being more like his Son. 

Golly, I tend to get long winded. Sorry, moving on. 

In July, I turned 20 (woo!) and played in the water some more. I hurt my ankle the week before my birthday, so I spent my birthday at an indoor shooting range and doing a LOTR and Hobbit Marathon. Wow, what a day. 

Surfing away

I did a few posts about growing up, a video of us surfing, and a post on funny videos. Just went and watched Swedish Chef again - gee that guy is funny. 

August rolled around - wow, the year is going quickly isn't it?  - We had my graduation party with some of the men from church, where they all got together and gave me a challenge,  basically to go out there and take over the world for God - awesome stuff. If I could hear that every day of my life, I probably would be a different man. 

We also had my Birthday/Graduation party up north in the mountains for two days, with my new canoe I bought and fixed up, playing on the lake, and catching crawdads in the creek. 

Me at the end of my grad party

Breaking in my new 20 foot canoe I fixed up - and it floated! 

Yes, he is hunting crawdads with a bow

I did a few random blog posts, one of which was still sparking political arguments recently. 

September rolled in with a swing, and brought loads of action and excitement. 

My mom went on a road trip with our other family for a horse show for a week, so all the guys from both families were at home taking care of enough animals to open a small zoo. Fun stuff. 

Right afterwards was Noah's Birthday, where I took Noah canoeing, then we went out in the desert with our other family, and blew up a dryer, shot guns, and lit off fireworks. 

Adventure calls...

Me looking more than pleased, the smoke from what was left of a dryer floating away in the background. 3 pounds of Tannerite + dryer = BIG BOOM.

Sat back and had our own personal firework show. Pretty isn't it? 

Right afterwards was our annual church Family camp, where I set my personal record on number of fish caught in one day, number of fish caught in the two day trip, and my biggest bass yet. Whopping weekend, where I also hurt my leg in a church game that nearly lamed me for over a month. I spent most of one afternoon limping around the lake catching fish like crazy. I have a knack of hurting myself at the wrong time..... 

Big bubba - or whatever the fish equivalent is 

I also finally finished a knife I had been making for the longest time. I took an old Horse rasp, and ground it down into a formidable hunting knife. I could chop through a tree with this thing, and I think it would still be sharp. It's a bit of a brick, but I would have no hesitation putting it through anything the wild throws at me. All the long hours of work were totally worth it. 

A knife among knives

I also decided in September that, someday, I would do an outdoor adventure business - Man Up Adventures. Hope to pull that off someday. 

October came in much looked for, and with it my first Elk season, where I spent a week watching more 4-wheelers and trucks than elk, got a shot at one but didn't bring it in, then nearly hit a big bull in the road on our way home.    

Yours truly 

I did a few posts about the hunt itself, but besides that the only other thing I did was start having a friend build me a website for my art (COMING SOON!) 

November snuck in before I knew what was happening, and brought with it a fun post about makeup, and couple of other ones in light of Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving was had at our other families house, with fun, food, and bows - redneck thanksgiving all the way, and I think I can safely say, the best Thanksgiving I have had yet. 

I think this is my favorite shot of the year, with my favorite people anywhere

December came way to quickly, bringing with it a deer hunt - my first archery hunt for that matter, with a post on what I learned on the hunt. 

Me and my family saw Thor 2, The Hobbit 2, I argued with HTML for an evening and produced my first blogger button, and....well....

That would bring me to right now! 

Whew! What a year. My years keep getting better - Next year should be whopping. : ) 

But honestly, I really do want to know - what change have you all seen in me this past year? It was pretty momentous for me, so I would love y'alls outside opinion - and tips for improving! As honest and blatant as you can manage - without getting nasty.  : D 

All in all, the best year I have had yet. Learning so much more than I ever thought possible, growing in more ways than I ever thought possible (thank God not my waistline.....) with loads of awesome hunting, fishing, hiking, swimming, canoeing, talking, praying, and other stories ram-packed in around them. 

Thank God for a good year - here's to more. 

Heroes and Damsels

Christmas has come and gone, and left me sick in bed. :( Thank God I got through Christmas before I went under, but now I am spending a good deal of time in bed. 

My brother and I received Thor, Captain America, and the Avengers for Christmas on DVD, and since he is sick as well, we broke in the new movies in style in our pajamas on laptops. I don't care who you are, or where you are from, that is an awesome gift. :) 

As you all should know by now, I love heroic movies of all types and varieties, whether the hero is waving a sword or a six-shooter, or anything in-between. Hammers included. 

Watching the Marvel movies recently has made me realize something that I hadn't seen before. My mom had hinted at it, and kinda eluded to it, but it hadn't quite clicked in my mind till now. 

Guys are meant to be heroes, and anybody who thinks otherwise has never seen a two year old with a stick in the backyard. At the age ripe old age of two, he will bash the brains out of every villainous bush in sight, wade through G.I. Joe strewn terrain, all to save his sister from that menacing bee hovering slightly too close for the poor damsels comfort. 

It's built into guys to want to be the hero, save the day, rescue the maiden, and then be respected and honored for it. There is a reason the Marvel movies have had such a massive success in today's culture. Effeminate guys who couldn't bench 20 are desperate to fill that hero in them just trying to leak out, but the feminized world keeps stuffing it back in every time it's facial hair and muscles give a show around the corner. 

Sorry, that feminism stuff was a side rant. Moving on.

So it's built into guys to want to be heroes, but I am finding that I can get a bit discouraged and discontent sometimes, after watching heroic movies, or reading epic stories of gallant men, hair-breadth escapes, and ending the whole tale with a dashing rescue of the damsel in distress, usually accompanied by the death of some fearsome beast. 

Because, honestly, none of that stuff happens in real life. 

Aliens don't attack New York, thus demanding people in cool suits and smashing weapons to come save the day. It looks so smashing (litterally) to beat them up with a shield and a hammer.

The lady doesn't ever get captured, and dragons seemed to have died out ages ago. Shouldn't somebody have told those knights to save a few for guys down the line? 

You never get cornered by a ruthless pack of men wielding knives and black mustaches, forcing you to defend your life (or even better - your wife) from overwhelming odds. Last stands are so epic.

That bump in the night wasn't an armed robbery waiting to be averted - it was the dog dreaming about chasing the cat again. Those new hollow-points will have to wait. 

You never find a treasure chest in you back yard, or find a secret compartment in the barn with a cryptic clue, leading you on a wild goose chase with gold or fortune at the end of the trail, the path woven with crooks and villains after the same treasure and willing to do very un-gentlemanly things to get it.   

You don't get a chance to sail to South America and find all the adventure you had ever dreamed about in treasure hunts in Brazil, sword fights with Pirates, battles with toothsome crocodiles, and long hikes across breathtaking scenery. 

Face it - none of that happens in real life. 

Life involves barn chores, brainless goats, sick people, moping floors, muddy boots, junk mail, loads of laundry waiting to be dealt with, and dirty dishes starting to resemble those mountains of Peru you keep reading about. 

Adventures don't really come knocking on your door. They just don't. 

I read all the epic stories, I watch all the epic movies, listen to all the epic music, then walk away and go back to my normal life, wondering why my life can't be that way. 

Girls, you aren't off the hook either.   

The stories all have the guys come riding in on a horse - or flying in with a red cape - to save the maiden from sudden death, or something as equally terrible. The man is always there, whisking you off into the sunset, one arm around the girl, the other holding onto the rope he is hanging by as he swings across the canyon. You girls are made to be loved, and to look up to a certain somebody in your life as your hero, as your knight in skiny armor, there to battle the villains in your life for you. Where the heck did he go? 

And I can imagine you get a bit discouraged and discontent as well. Why don't more guys go around in tights with shields? 

We all live in the plain, ordinary world, where things are....well.... plain and ordinary. Guys don't have epic battles with winged vermin, and girls don't have dashing gents to whisk them away. 

We have grocery shopping, piano lessons, putting in overtime at work, dead cell phone batteries, taxes, sick animals, and feed bills. The list of unadventurous and unexciting things that our lives consist of is tremendous, and this list of exciting things that actually happens is limited to the water-heater breaking in the middle of that nice hot shower. 

So what happened to guys being made to be heroes? What happened to girls needing to be rescued? Sure, in the old days ordinary people had loads of adventures, battling Indians on the Oregon trail, fighting starvation in the dead of a Kansas winter when there is six feet of snow on the ground, and the like. We can list out all the good times people had braving the brave new world as they explored, plowed, and made the world we are in now. But that was then - the list of adventures waiting to be had in our present day and age seems to have grown thin.

So what now? So we blow everything up and start from scratch? Or we all move to South America and Africa, and start up homesteading there? A good dose of Safari aught to fill your adventure meter. 

Are we as boys doomed to a non-adventurous life? Are all the ladies fated to sit on the front porch and watch the sunset without a horseman to whisk them away into it?

Hardly, I think. We are just looking the wrong way. I am finding I have to constantly readjust my focus and mindset from shields and swords to.... well, I'll get there in a moment. 

As guys, we ten to think heroics can only be accomplished by wielding a weapon and defending the helpless against overwhelming odds. Girls tend to think heroes are tall, strikingly handsome, and wear either armor or designer tights. 

We should think again.

Full Definition of HERO

1

a :  a mythological or legendary figure often of divine descent

endowed with great strength or ability

b :  an illustrious warrior

c :  a man admired for his achievements and noble qualities

d :  one who shows great courage

2

a :  the principal male character in a literary or dramatic work

b :  the central figure in an event, period, or movement

3

plural usually he·ros :  submarine 2

4

:  an object of extreme admiration and devotion :

 Ok, so half of that definition we already knew - brave guy, saving the world from aliens. Or something similar.         

The other half tends to get kinda left out. 

Showing great courage isn't limited to charging headlong at a line of spearmen - what about facing off that foul-mouthed uncle at a family party? Courage isn't be fearless - it's being scared and not letting your fear stop you. 

Guys, being heroic can mean merely opening the door for a lady, merely mopping up the kitchen when your mom is sick - little things. Little acts of heroism that go unnoticed are often times the greatest heroics of all. Most guys will take on twelve armed thugs - with his bare hands if need be - if his wife is in their custody. Not many guys will go in and clean the entire kitchen because their wife has a nasty headache and is laying down. Any guy will take a bullet for his girl - it takes a real man to make that late-night run to the store - in your pajamas and slippers -  because the kids are sick and the wife needs more chicken soup. 

Gents, that's heroics. 

We tend to think heroics are only heroics if they help change the world. 

The world is made and shaped by thousands of tiny actions by every person, every day. By doing those small things, you really, legitimately, are changing the world. Granted, there isn't the glitz and glam accompanying mopping as usually follows an epic sword fight, but mopping is just as important. 

You want to be a hero? Obey your parents in the little things, don't argue back, fetch your mom that glass of water, hold the door for that lady, carry the heavy things to the car..... you know the list. It's ingrained into every guy to do those things, to help and be the hero, just sometimes it needs training and tempering to bring it out, and to squash down the mangy head of selfishness that too often appears on the scene instead. 

Gals, the same goes for you, just in different ways. 

Your hero might not be six feet tall, have long blonde hair, and tote a hammer, but thank your little brother for being that hero when he fetches you the broom, or squashes that spider into the carpet you just cleaned. Thank him for it all - it will mean the world to him, and will also inspire him to do similar things again.

So Gals, be content with the heroes you have. God has given you all the heroes you need. 

So guys, start looking for those little ways to be heroic. It doesn't have to involve killing things, really. It can just be setting the table for your mom. In fact, whenever you did something right, did something kind, did something just, did something loving - you were a hero. This world is sorely needing people to do things like that, and the more you do it, the more you change the world. 

Girls, be content with the little heroics around you. That guy who let you go first at the stop sign was giving you quite the favor. Learn to spot those small hero-isms, and be grateful for those small things.

Because it's those small things, guys and girls, that really make the difference. It's those little things, that are really heroic.

A cape is just icing.