it's simple.

clear cut.
simple.
to the point.
-if only all my posts could be like this...

thoughts on a beautiful fight

I usually get pumped up for a good fight. Not necessarily a fist fight, or an argument type of fight... Rather the kind of fight that is more like a Good vs. Evil ..... something big, something epic.... Like fighting for glory and truth - over darkness and filth, something outside and beyond myself.
Something spiritual.
I came across an article at the Boundless.org website a couple of days ago and it gave a fresh perspective towards the way a Christian should fight. Even now, a few of the words are still fixed in my mind. Read it here. see what you think...
the main point that has stuck out in my mind for the last few days from the article has been this statement: Not falling is the means, not the goal, of a spiritual warrior's vocation. For far too long I have had this mindset towards many battles in my life. ...so may I sharpen my focus on the goal : on Jesus Christ, savior and Lord.

Como esta amigos......?......

My plane leaves tomorrow morning.... I will be going here:


:-)


This trip is entirely funded by the Southwestern company....

what !?

A calm night, sitting at my computer
relaxed, barefoot.

Sweet tunes flowing in my ears,
my toes are tappin'.

Swift typing - progress made on homework,
soft carpet under my feet.

Perfect temperature in the room,
comfortable head to toe.

A tickle strikes my foot gently,
I dismiss the thought.

What ! ?

Something grazes my foot yet again,
now running free over skin!

What ! ?

My eyes focus on the floor, my heart stops,
a giant beast standing tall beside me.

What ! ?

A swift movement, a rustle of paper,
the putting on of a shoe.

What ! ?

A swift blow, crushing in force,
a life ended, silence.

What ! ?

Thoughts run through my head,
"Did that just happen?"

What !?

Reaching for a paper towel, folding it over twice,
a disposal of the life that once was.

What ! ?

Once again sitting at my computer, music back on,
yet now- shoes secure on my feet.

Shoes feel snug and warm,
I feel safe.

Ok, I don't think I can keep this poem going.... In fact, I'm not even sure why I started to write this poem. I guess in my head I figured that it would be better to tell my story in poetic form rather than just write it out in normal prose. But as you can tell I'm not good at poetry, it doesn't even rhyme. How lame.
Anyway, the above poem is my way of explaining what happened to me in my dorm room last night... Basically I was sitting at the computer barefoot, working on homework and just jammin away to some music. - when out of nowhere a giant cockroach tickled my foot. Then in a daring move (before I knew what was happening) he scurried over the top of my foot. I freaked out, and in a rage I ended his life.

Moreover, this is the 3rd death in my room this semester. I think enough is enough - it was time to make a post. I guess keeping your room clean is NOT enough. I hate to make excuses, but this one rests on the shoulders of good ol' Haggin Hall. Let's just say that at this point I'm in a serious "Love/Hate" relationship with my dorm right now...

Laugh more....

Aside from the fact that 4 out the 5 above pictures look more frightening than funny, there IS a reason for putting them on this post. ---> These people are all reaping the benefits of hearty laughter. (although I have a hunch that the guy in the second picture from the top probably needs more health benefits that what he normally gets from his laughter.) anyway, the point is this: LAUGH MORE , it's good for ya...

A good hearty laugh can :

• reduce stress
• lower blood pressure
• elevate mood
• boost immune system
• improve brain functioning
• protect the heart
• foster instant relaxation

A night at the movies...

Tonight I went to go see Dan In Real Life.


initial thoughts:
This movie quietly stands out from the typical Hollywood mold. There are no excessive cuss words, nor are there cheesy special effects. Nope, no computer animated fakeness to be found anywhere either. This film was great because it just kept things simple. It was refreshing and went at just the right pace. Moreover, this movie was great because when you watch it - you end up laughing just the right amount. You laugh as much as you do in real life. Which for me, is quite a lot.

Another reason I enjoyed this movie is because surprisingly about 30 of my friends showed up to come see it. ---(You know those times when you send out a text message to your friends in hope that at least just one of them will actually be able to go to the movie?)--- Well, my observation has always been that people will run around and do their own thing not giving a second thought to the movie unless they get an answer to the question: "So who all is going to be there?" And hopefully if you tell them the right names, then they will show up. Well, tonight a crazy thing happened because people actually did show up. A lot of people. It was beautiful. It was real life. I hope it happens again...

Overall I did learn a few lessons from this night at the movies:

1. That Hollywood will sometimes (mostly by accident) make a good movie.
2. To never text-message a large quantity of friends to come see a movie - because it might actually happen. > Then when they all get there you can't sit with them in a large group. ( b/c there are never 20+ open seats in a theater together available for the group.)
3. That the two lessons above are just things that happen in real life. - I should enjoy 'em.

a college observation...

College is great.
Because college allows for much time on my Huffy.




Huffy: Get one. Have Fun!

a word on podcasts....

It is now time to reveal one of my
all consuming passions in life: podcasts.

There's not just one - there are actually three that I regularly enjoy.
I can honestly say that about 89% of my time spent on the computer consists of watching/listening to them...
I do not want to sound obsessed, but I think I am.
(They're free, and they're saturated with biblical goodness... what's not to love?)


My obsessive podcasts (in no particular order) are:

Cornerstone Simi ~ w/ Francis Chan
Breakaway Ministries ~ w/ Ben Stuart
Desiring God ~ w/ John Piper

do you write?

- do you write? -more specifically do you write down your thoughts about God and what he is doing in your life? No.(?) If you are saying "nope" right now and are just continuing to read without giving it a second thought, I hope maybe I can persuade you otherwise...
Being human we have a limited capacity to remember things. I do not need to prove this fact for we all know it is true. Ok, if you want proof: then try and remember what your pastor spoke about 3 weeks ago? what did you learn from it? do you remember? Maybe, but probably not.
__(Ok, so what's your point?)__
Well, if it takes a strain to remember something like a recent sermon - how much more difficult would it be to remember what God has been in your life over the past year or so??? and NO, I'm not talking about the "BIG" things. Obviously the huge things that He teaches you can easily recall. But what about the small things? What about all of your prayers? Can you even remember what your prayers were about during this time last year? What about the things you struggled with? What about where your heart was towards God?
{ --- the past few weeks I have been in deep thought. I'm talking super deep. Almost like I've been in a daze. It has been weird, almost beyond words(actually yes, beyond words: this post really does it no justice to how I was feeling)... Basically coming out of this tunnel of thought I can see some things that really slowed me down. I realized that I have recently made my Christian walk very complicated. Trying to make decisions about school, major, time, life - it does start to take its toll. I've been distracted with thought, even paralyzed by thought.
I'm out of that phase (at least for now). If I were to and put into words exactly how I've come out of this mindset from the past few weeks I would certainly write 20 pages. And as you can tell, I'm not one who can write with clarity and conciseness... no I prefer run on sentences and long drawn out rambling when I write.... Hindsight is 20/20 , or is it?}
- For these reasons I will just go ahead and zoom forward to my point for writing this post:

To be clear and concise - my point is this: You should write down your thoughts and prayers to God everyday. - It was so refreshing to look back on past days/months and read how God has provided for me and worked in my life. Yes, it was weird to see my own handwriting and think "did I actually write that?" - but weird in a good way. (this combined with scripture helped me get out of my recent "daze" of thought)... You never know what kind of blessings you will receive from being able to go back and see how God has been at work in your life. Moreover, writing things down helps you formulate clear thoughts rather than run-on prayers. And who knows - maybe the things you write down will help you get out of some future "strange" times of thought. Maybe it will help you praise Him. Maybe you will write down the answer to a question that you have today. Maybe you will be able to give it to someone to read and help them on their own walk with Christ...
---- For me, right before bed is an ideal time... It's simple: Just write down a lil' bit from the day, date it, then go to bed. and I'm not asking you to journal everything that happened to you during the day (although that is not bad) but to just simply throw down some of the things that God has taught you during the day + your prayers. Soon, before you know it you will have an invaluable recording of your Christian walk.
ok, here's my last ( and most important) point:

I firmly believe that some of the things that God is working in your life are way too big to merely see on a a day to day basis. Only by looking back at how he has interwoven numerous circumstances/prayers will you be able to catch a glimpse of what he is doing in the seasons your faith. And yes, you will undoubtedly be able to see the big things: no problem. But what about the small ? this is why you should write: so that you don't miss 'em. B/c sometimes the small things can be the most profound.

just some thoughts.... all I really wanted to say is that I have recently had such a blessing by being able to go back and look at the many steps in my walk with Christ.

go ahead - try it. I doubt you will regret it.