Beauty for Ashes

Thursday, March 30, 2006

Neil


Well to say I’ve never met someone else like Neil is a bit of an understatement. Neil is definitely one of the funniest people I have ever met. If he has any shame, he stamps it to death every day. Neil was one of the first friends I found at Appalachian, quite a bit of my first semester was spent at Jonathan and Neil’s place. One is always so grateful for the first new friends in a new place. And while sometimes Neil’s antics get to be more than anyone would ever want to see…..yes…….he’s one of the people that you always admire for their courage to be who they are. If you could ever get Neil to be serious for a second, which is extremely hard (I have seen it done on occasion though), you would find that he is actually extremely wise. Behind the apparently insane exterior is a man who loves God with all his heart. Neil has a lot of wisdom to offer in so many areas. If you haven’t met Neil Brunson, if you ever do you won’t forget him.

Sunday, March 26, 2006

Sunrise Highway


This life can break you down, but it's all we have for now. Lately life has been hard for me, and once again it's the constant struggle to be ok. To know in my heart that God has me safely. Trusting is just so hard to do when people let you down, it's so hard to allow yourself to be vulnerable, te feel the way you feel no matter what it is. To be ok in the place where you are, this has been a common theme for me recently. I just want to be alright with who I am, and where I am. But that seems so impossible when what I am is hurt. Trying to find God's love, and the safety that is in knowing that God;s ability to fufill his purposes in my life is so much greater than my ability to screw it up. I want to learn to be vulnerable, to leave myself unprotected. Because no matter how tough your defenses are, you're still going to get hurt, and the only thing that those defenses will really keep out is love. So why not be vulnerable? I'm going to be hurt either way, and I don't care I just want the life that is there for me. I'm not sure i know how to do it, but that's ok I don't think I really need to. This has been a stream of thought.

Friday, March 24, 2006

Things happen


"....and that cop felt the wrath of God when he was shot during a raid on a meth lab a week later"-the tale end of a true story.

Tuesday, March 21, 2006

Sunsets, Cigarettes, and Stephen


Spring Break = little sleep, lots of driving, friends some old some new. After spending a few days in the home town, I headed south to Atlanta to see Steve. As always, we picked right up where we left off over New Years. We spent the days taking pictures, driving, filming, talking about girls almost exclusively. Got to spend some good hours with Beth, Lindsay, and Sarah. It's always good to meet new people. I did manage to hurt Stephen several times, mostly unintentionally. It happens. It was definitely nice to watch a lot of killing in various guy movies. Drinking iced tea and hot coffee at the same time, makes me want to pee. But also makes me feel strangely satisfied. Glad I don't live in Peachtree City, they can have their golfcarts, I'll keep my freedom. As always Harry and Diane are two of the coolest parents I know. Things I learned - Athens is boring, but has good food. - Stephen does in fact like girls, A LOT - Belt Buckles are expensive everywhere - Women are relentlessly confusing (I already knew this actually) - More about how not to be a father..........DIBS ON CRUMPY........!

Tuesday, March 07, 2006

Anywhere but here


Well, I've been ready to go for awhile now, ready to leave this for a time, but alas, my responsibilities. And even now with Spring break fast approaching I know that my brief time on the road, and short adventures will only deepen my hunger for travel. But then I'll think of those I would leave behind, how long could I stand to be away? I think not as long as I want, because I wouldn't want to be gone so long. A blessing to be sure.

Wednesday, March 01, 2006

Bing


So here is John Bingham, the next one up on my friends series. I don’t know if he will remember this, but he was the very first friend I ever had in school. It was Miss Bohanon’s second grade class back in 1993. We would sit across from each other at lunch every day, and I thought he had the coolest socks for some reason. Wow, what a blessing that 13 years later we’re still best friends, with no end in sight.
Especially these past few years, beginning with our junior year of high school, I have been blessed to watch John grow into a true man of God, I can truly say I am astonished and just taken a back at the heart of God that resides in John Bingham.
Now that we are both in college, he at Liberty, I at Appalachia, we don’t get to skip class, or go to the Y, or take a group poop like we used to. But that makes the time we do get to spend together, like over New Years in Myrtle Beach, all that much more special. And it makes me truly appreciate the friend that God has blessed me with in John Bingham. The most comforting thing is knowing that 50 years from now, when we’re both grandfathers, we’ll still be best friends, and we’ll be old and senile together. Making jokes that no one else understands, making the dumbest threats, which we don’t mean at all. Perhaps the biggest compliment I can pay to Bingham is that instead of thinking about whether or not he deserves a girl, I think about whether she deserves him. Yeah, he’s that good a man. So Bing, I’ll see you in a few weeks for Spring Break, until then, love you man.