Day 63: Acceptance

Sorry long time no see. I haven't been able to talk for a while. It has been a longstanding issue of scholarships and stressful applications that culminated in my being so super stressed out its not even phunny. Ha. And I had 5 soccer games last week which didn't really help my desire to post. I like ya'll. I promise. haha.

Alright so I'm gonna go ahead and get this off my chest (Rachel Conry I think you will like this). So I got accepted to Vanderbilt University. Home of the Commodores. I am supposed to find out about Duke tonight if I ever remember my password to log on and check. I would do the "forget your password" option, but it has three questions that I forgot the answer to.... haha. Anyways I don't know what to expect but I honestly hope they decline me because I truly don't want to have to make a decision. Its Vanderbilt right now, but if Duke accepts me, what then?? I'm so concerned as to what on earth I could possibly do haha. It worries me a little bit.

On a lighter note. This weekend is stadium fest. and Relay for Life. and April fools. and the deadline for four scholarships. and the hoover game. and yeah.... haha acceptance is a thing that many people struggle with. Shoot. I struggle with it. I don't know a person in the world (except Howard Fox, but i honestly think he does care...) who doesn't care what someone thinks of them. Everyone has to be approved or accepted in some way or another, and if they aren't? Well.... That's when the people start to jump off the deep end and we either get people who are so strong in the Lord that they get accepted by the church or someone in some way, orrr they become psychopaths and serial killers. (I mean we gotta get criminal minds from SOMEWHERE). But yeah so I gotta go finish this application so I'll talk to you later eh??
---- The Walking Man

Day 55: Short Post

So today is a short post cause my engineering teacher keeps nagging me about all these scholarship applications and Its really bugging me. So I just wanted to say hey and some Colorado Pictures should appear sometime soon. Game tonight so send up a prayer or two that we will do well. Thanks!
---- The Walking Man

Day 45: Colorado

Time for departure. This, unfortunately, means I will not be able to correspond with you while I am on the bus unless I find some sort of internet device that will allow me to update my blog. I think there may be a computer at the lodge, but hey I'm not gonna take the time to worry about it ha. Anyways on a slightly different note...

We lost last night 3-0. I let up the first goal and it just went downhill from there. I don't know what went wrong, but we screwed up. Sad day. I will, however, say also that we could have won if we had come prepared and ready to play. I wasn't focused, but hopefully we will be able to deal it out to Vestavia and take home another win.

I would like to confess something to you. Last night I don't think I played with God in mind very well. I thought about it while I was in, yes, but I feel like my conduct was that of someone who was just so angry that I had to play dirty. Soccer is a beautiful game, made to honor a beautiful God. In playing dirty, I immediately lost any attempts I could  have made at honoring God. It was unsportsmanlike. I will do my best from now on to fix that, but just thought I would let you know. Now back to Colorado.....

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH I'm leaving for Colorado in an hour and 47 minutes!!!! This is gonna be so dad gum awesome. The bus ride will be incredibly long and fun and I'm so ready to giterdone!!! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH! This is gonna be a good trip. Hopefully. Pray for good weather :)
---- The Walking Man

Day 44: Game Day

Its game day ladies and gentlemen, probably the most determining game of the year and the second most important game of the year. Maybe third. But guess what is in 15 hours and 20 minutes???? Departure. Boom. That's how it goes. I'm so pumped about that but I gotta keep my eyes on Him right now. I gotta focus on my game. Pray that I will do my best to glorify Him in all that I do.

So Brad Paisley had a new song premier today! Its called "Good Ole Alabama" I think and its pretty dad gum awesome haha. Especially the end. He goes into a little... well I'll let you listen and find out. Its so good :). Anyways for those of you that are coming to the game tonight can I get a Go Jags??? Ha. Well Colorado. That is gonna be a supremely epic experience. I think my cat just fell off the dryer. hehe. Take a second. Take two. Say thanks to the great God above. See how long that took? Yet many of us go through a whole 86,400 seconds without even thinking about thanking God for what He has done for us. I've been guilty of this more times than I can count. I'm kinda jittery. I'm worried about our game tonight. I need to lift it up to God and until now I didn't think about THAT. So I took a moment to give it to Him. Lifting our lives up to God is something we have to do every single day. Every single moment we must acknowledge that He is the creator of our being and the benefactor of our lives. Our duty is to recognize that. I encourage all of you to do your best in glorifying Him and thanking Him for everything He does. Give it all to Him.
Tuo Da Gloriam!
---- The Walking Man

Day 41: Hey

Ha I love you. This is so fun. Thanks! I'm giving up facebook for lent. I'll still be posting, but I'll talk to you later! Economics is up next. Game tonight. Praise His name! Just felt like making a baby post for today ;) later!

My cousin is Afghanistan. This is what he took of the Tunisian Coastline

Him in Egypt. I mean. Dad gum.


Serving in the army. Here is his view when he stayed in Saudi Arabia. This makes me want to travel so badly! Ah haha. The new background in my blog is also a picture from his trip to Saudi Arabia. I mean Dad Gum!!
follow his blog. www.morganjordan.blogspot.com

Non Nobis Domine, Domine,
Non Nobis Domine
Sed Nomine
Sed Nomine
Tuo Da Gloriam

English:
Not to us Lord, Lord
Not to us Lord
But to your name
But to your name
Be the Glory.

"If you can't praise Him when the rain is pouring, don't praise Him when the sun is shining." This is a quote that actually pops up on our many flat screen televisions around the school. I was surprised to see the quote at first, but now I just take advantage of the fact that it's there. If you don't want to thank the Lord and praise His name in your suffering, then why on earth would you want to praise Him in times of good? He does so much more for you when you are in the pits than at the peaks.

God gives me the ability to stand. So I stand for Him. God gives me the ability to speak. So I speak for Him. God gives me the ability to run. So I run to Him and for Him. God gives me the ability to write. So I praise His name in my writing. God gives me the ability to play soccer. So I play soccer to glorify Him. Eric Little is a man I think I have referenced before, and some of you may know him. He ran the 100M dash I believe. He ran in the Olympics, but because the 100M dash was on Sunday he refrained from running to honor the sabbath. He then ran the 50M the next day and won the gold medal. One quote he is well known for is this, "God made me fast, and when I run, I feel His pleasure." We all have some gift from God. We need to use it to glorify Him. And now I bid you adieu and will see you soon. Off to bed.

---- The Walking Man

Day 40: Peers and Power

I had some banana pudding :)))) haha. It was good. My story rocked too. But we have a soccer game on Tuesday against Mountain Brook at Mountain Brook a game Friday at Oak Mountain and then the Saturday after we get back from COLORADO against Vestavia at Spain Park. COLORADO. It will be so amazing I'm so dad gum excited!!!!! I'm gonna film my first trip on the snowboard. See how far I fall. One thing I have stood fast in, however, is that no matter how much I am pushed to drop snowboarding, I am gonna do it. I will snowboard.

Peer Pressure is a dangerous thing and I'm slightly worried it will get the best of me in college. My friend Rachael Luther (keep her in your prayers in her move to Greece and check out her blog http://rlutherblog.blogspot.com/ its really good :)))and I are discussing the problems of this peer pressure in matters like drinking, drugs, and sex. I honestly can say I haven't really been troubled by those issues in high school and so I don't know how I will respond to it in college. That is the main reason why I feel worried about it. But I just pray I can handle it.

I also have this slight problem. I sorta just like to talk to people. It tends to lead people in the wrong perspective of me. I realize I can just stop, and I am giving up facebook for lent. But what can I do? I honestly don't try to be so... forward?... but sometimes I just come across with the wrong intentions. I say things before I think and it ends up killing me because people get the wrong impression. I need God's help to figure out how I can control my tongue in this manner. Pray for it. I really feel kinda confused.
---- The Walking Man

Day 37: Piña Coladas

I found a recipe for Banana Pudding yesterday. I stole it off the ground, tore the name off of it, and promptly shoved it in my backpack so I could use it to make some banana pudding today with our overripe bananas... XD. I'm about to get started so that its ready to go when I get home. Granted, I could have looked it up on the internet, but that would have been wayyy more trouble than picking it up and walking away! I like starting school at 1140.... Os just used one of my bananas in a smoothie (It was pina colada). DAD GUM! Did you know bacon prices have gone up 41 cents a pound? How are we supposed to survive? I know Leo is gonna have to start pulling all-nighters working the late shift at the Western to pay for that. So I don't have work and I don't have soccer tonight! You know what that means??? Everyone else will probably be doing something and then want to hang out tomorrow when I'm doing something. As Mr. Carboni would say... BOOOOOO!

Anyways so judgement is our topic of discussion for today. Judging people and God judging you. James 2: verse something says, "So speak and so do as one who will be judged by the law of liberty. For judgement is without mercy to the one who shows no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgement." This tells us how we should live our lives. Tells us we must strive to be perfect. The rest of the chapter says,

"Now if there should come into your presence a rich man wearing fine apparel and gold rings, and there should also come into your presence a poor man wearing filthy clothes. And you say to the one in the fine apparel, 'Come sit here in a good place' and to the one wearing the filthy clothes, 'Stand there' or 'Sit here at my footstool.' Have you  not shown partiality among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? Beloved, has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs to the kingdom which He has promised to those who love Him? But you have dishonored the poor man. Do not the rich oppress you and drag you into the courts? Do they not blaspheme that noble name by which you are called? But if you really fufill the royal law according to the Scripture, 'Love your neighbor as yourself' You do well. But if any of you show pariality he has been convicted by the law as a transgressor. For whomever shall keep the whole law yet stumble at one point, he is guilty of all. For he who said 'do not commit adultery' also said 'do not commit murder' now if you do not commit adultery, but you do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law."

I realize thats quite a bit, so I'll summarize it for you. We cannot be judges. We cannot judge people and rank them and tell others they are less important. Only God knows the hearts of the people, and even among Christians, no one is greater than another. We will all be in heaven one day, singing his praise continuously. But God deals seriously with people who judge. Those who judge without mercy will be judged without mercy. So if you or I say someone will go to Hell and isn't a Christian because he dresses funny, God can judge us in the exact same manner. Regardless of how well you think you know a person, you don't know them. Their soul is completely unknown to you and you cannot possibly make a proper judgement on them. So don't. Don't immediately hate someone you met on a bad day. Don't bash someone you've only known for a few moments. God can take any snippet of your life and make you look way worse than anyone. Take nothing for granted, and don't judge people. God hates that. I do it way to frequently and I need to grab hold of it and give it up to God. Reconcile your judgements.
---- The Walking Man

Day 36: Sunrise Days

So here is my Wednesday Morning Sunrise from the Briarwood Hilltop. I like the silhouette form of the trees. This was taken from my phone and I like it alot ha. It shows how beautiful God is. Its a wonderful picture of the renewal of God's mercy and the omnipresence of his beauty.

So toady I sent a message to my good ole friend Rachael Luther. I have been talking to her on Facebook about all our ordeals. From college to her Grecian move to photography. But what I said today was something I said without thinking. I said, "I wish everyday was a missions trip."

 Immediately I felt stupid cause thats what we are called to do daily. We are called by God to be witnesses for Him. Every day we are supposed to live our lives as witnesses. I mean wow! I feel so stupid for saying that. Like I don't go on Missions Trips cause there fun, but the adventure is definitely one of my greatest desires and so I struggled with the idea of a missions trip to Birmingham. I've definitely warmed to the idea, but I felt so selfish. I wanted the thrill of Jamaica. The sights of New York. I definitely feel far more called to the Birmingham Outreach Missions Trip and I hope all of Y'all are participating. God has a reason for everything He does and even the most common and unexciting events like the sunrising can be examples of His grace travelling much further than any of us could hope for. He is real, He is God.
---- The Walking Man

Day 35: Daffodils



So these daffodils are outside my house ha. I lost my SD card which is kinda throwing off my picture taking groove. Anyways. I want to talk about the greiving friend again. I told you how hard it is. How difficult it is to understand someone's problems. Its just so difficult to tell someone you can't help them. You can't take the pain away. You can't do anything but be there and watch them suffer. And they are stuck. They want to get better, they don't want you to watch them suffer. Most of them absolutely hate it when you pity them and don't want any of it, but they can't help it. Its an unyielding dilemma that causes nothing but distress. It just never ends.

Today we visited UAB for engineering-day. Quite a few people came to see their program, but not as many as Auburn's. I was kinda bored cause I hadn't even applied there, but hey! I got to skip some class. Anyways. In my bored state I just kinda sat there and looked around. This may sound weird, but sitting I kept feeling the insignificance of each day kinda wash over me. I felt so small, ha, like the daffodil. Very small, very insignificant. It felt so weird just to think about the large scope of outerspace and all and see myself from such a huge perspective. Its daunting at times. I wish I could describe it better, but I just was comforted in the idea of God being out there taking notice of me. The fact that He is there watching me, knowing my every move. Its creepy, but comforting, because it makes me feel less small, and I can know something worth living for.
---- The Walking Man