the stuff that character is made of
02.20.06

though not hardcore, i am a bit calvinist in my theological leanings, which is what makes me a little disgruntled with something spoken in very stereotypical terms this morning during the church service. how many times am i going to have to endure the assumption that calvinism = "once saved, always saved," as in that whole cheap grace thing and the lasciviousness that characterizes it? small gripe, but the rest of the message was really great. every time i study 1 john, it just gets me all worked up mentally. my brain gets these cramps over just trying to puzzle out living without any sin in my life. it's impossible!

this evening i brought my guitar over to jen's and played for a few hours. i'm getting that itch again now that i have some time to breathe- the itch to just play and play and write and play some more. my fingertips are swollen. oy! anyway, we had our second lifegroup meeting of the semester, which consists of watching and then discussing the previous week's message from 722. tonight, the message was on character, and how it is formed in us through our conformity to the image of Christ. potent stuff. the entire discussion stemmed from 1 samuel 24, which is the account of david sparing saul's life when he could have easily stabbed him in the back. one of the points made was that doing what is permissable, legal, or allowed is not always the same thing as doing what is right. the person who does what is right, even when they can get away scott-free without doing it, is the person of strong character. i wonder how often i get off easy by way of shortcuts: slacking on the job, skipping on papers, manipulating other people? how many times do i take the path of least resistance, which may be fraught with things that are damaging to my character? it's big stuff to think on for a while. kinda like that saying, "character is what you do when nobody's looking." yikes. gotta dig into that one sometime. another point was that authority figures are to always be submitted to regardless of their own character or failings. you may have an abusive parent, a sucky teacher, or a horrible boss (i, fortunately, have none of these... but i have before), but they are still the authority figures who God has ordained to their stations in life.

jen's brother chris and his family came to montgomery this weekend. it was certainly a lot of fun getting to hang out with them. the kids are growing like weeds, and are as rambunctious and playful as ever. i love those boys; they're awesome. just makes me more anxious to book it to atlanta this summer. atl, here i come! well, seeing how it's late and i have to wake up semi-early in the morning, i think it's time for some shut-eye. i'm on the mandatory 8 hours of sleep kick again. i just can't go on being tired every day by noon. pleasant dreams.

check it out - 01.20.07
vapor - 11.15.06
can't complain - 11.10.06
turn the page - 11.09.06
who invented the word "me-maw"? - 09.28.06

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